


behind the sea

by SophiexHorayne



Category: Ackley Bridge (TV)
Genre: Enemies to Lovers, M/M, also ackley bridge is a seaside town, can you tell i wrote this on holiday, i mean sort of enemies to lovers idk, naveed just can’t stand cory
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-09-01
Updated: 2020-02-01
Packaged: 2020-10-04 17:47:16
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 11
Words: 26,909
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20475071
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SophiexHorayne/pseuds/SophiexHorayne
Summary: Naveed pictured the summer stretching before him with work at the arcade, ice creams on the beach with his friends. He never for a moment pictured weeks on end with Cory Wilson- the heterosexual popular walking stereotype from school- clearing up the esplanade after a ridiculous and not-even-his-fault incident. But it happened anyway.aka the one where ackley bridge is a seaside town and Naveed Haider cannot stand Cory Wilson





	1. prologue

Naveed laughs, shakes his head, and takes a lick from the ice cream slowly melting in his hands. 

“It’s true!” Nasreen insists beside him, “Missy, tell ‘im it’s true.”

“No way.” Naveed’s northern accent is thick. He shakes his head, “No way, did you kiss Cory bloody Wilson.”

“She did y’know.” Missy chimes in, wiping a drip of Mr Whippy ice cream off her hand with her tongue, “I were there. A long kiss an’ all.”

Naveed is still widely grinning, but quickly has to stop to slurp a few drops of ice cream about to slip from the cone. He looks out over the long stretch of sand on the beach. The tide’s out, and the sea is far in the distance, then reaches for miles and miles. The three friends sit on the wall above the beach. The stone is cool to sit on in the hot weather, and keeps you a little more free of sand, which, regardless, still gets everywhere. 

“In my defence…” Nas starts, “I was in the middle of a sexuality crisis.”

“Cory Wilson, though.” Naveed says, taking a bite from the flake poking out from the ice cream. “I mean, of all the boys. I wouldn’t kiss Cory. If he were the last boy on Earth.”

“Me neither.” Missy agrees, crunching down on the wafery cone (which is, agreeably, always a so-so part of a mr whippy) and leaning one hand back on the bit of stone wall behind her. She stares thoughtfully out to sea for a moment, “He’s got chlamydia written all over him.”

Naveed and Nas erupt into giggles, lips white with ice cream. Then Naveed calms down, leans back and mimics Missy’s position on the wall. He scrunches his nose,

“Gross.” He says. The others nod profusely. 

They finish their ice cream slowly, watch the sun melt below the horizon as though, it too, is ice cream.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> creds to watnowmaddie for the story title btw!!


	2. I

Ackley Bridge is a seaside town, with a beautiful, strongly underrated sandy beach that is almost a town secret. The esplanade, that runs along the beach, is stuffed full of amusements: 

At the far point, just before the beach dwindles, is a lake, where pedalos, designed to look like swans, can be ridden. Real swans swim there too, the occasional signet each early summer drawing multitudes of attention from citizens. The pedalos are £4 a person, for 15 minutes. But then the swans are beginning to look a little sorry for themselves. Missy swears they’ve begun to frown sadly under their paintwork.

A little way along from there are some gardens, and a cheap, relatively busy, little diner, highly americanised. Most meals consist of chips and peas. And there are nearly always a few children crying, and a few grumpy white people, tired of waiting so long for their food. 

Following this, is an arcade. Naveed has started working there, a little begrudgingly, for the summer. But he can’t complain too much, because even though most of the kids are rude and loud, and even though the pay isn’t much, some of his co-workers are hot. And it’s amusing to watch people’s frustration over the machines sometimes. And their joy when they win, obviously. 

From here, a large building, harbouring a bowling alley, where all the Ackley Bridge College students like to hang out, and an ice skating rink. Naveed, when not working in the arcade, spends a lot of time on the ice, and has started teaching classes for young children. Sometimes Nas joins him, maybe Missy too. The little food court just off from the rink do wonderful milkshakes. 

Just off of this building, is a smaller, additional one. Here is a swimming pool. The trio, and plenty others in sixth form despise it, and would rather gate crash the Nawaz’ pool. It’s full of kids, unhygienic and noisy. A plaster swam over to Naveed in the water once (a bloody one, yes) and smothered Naveed’s thigh. He’s not been in there since. 

After this, the pier. Nothing much really goes on there, rather boring, and probably explains the lack of tourism to the little town. Primarily, it is a viewing point, to look out to sea, watch the boats and the ships that pass. At the beginning of the pier there is an ice cream kiosk, so at least there’s that. 

Finally, the other end of the esplanade is a small funfair. There are not many rides, and what rides they do have are almost mini size. A small little bumper cars ring. A helter skelter, only a few metres, and probably won’t fit anyone over 10 years old. A trampoline, which is mostly where 12 year old boys try to show off but just end up looking dumb (Cory Wilson was absolutely one of these boys). There’s a small mini golf course, nine holes, somehow squeezed in. 

Behind the esplanade is Ackley Bridge town. The typical seafront restaurants litter it, sweet shops, ice cream, a toy shop. Behind this are houses, and the odd supermarket, if you were to go further. And beyond that, hills, tall and broad, almost fencing the small town in. Sheltering it, or imprisoning, depending on your view of the place. 

Cory Wilson walks down the esplanade, a little hurriedly, dragged by his dumb, Old English Sheepdog, Barney, who’s eager to reach the ice cream kiosk where he is often allowed to have a few free licks of the vanilla flavour if he is lucky. The boy has his earphones on, loudly. It’s early evening, and the main summer crowds have dwindled, though some still lurk, on benches, the beach, the little cafe. He almost has an empty path to walk along.

Almost. 

A lad he knows from school is walking the opposite way to him, typing on his phone, not watching where he’s going. Cory keeps walking, not taking much notice either. Barney has begun to tug on his lead. He can see the ice cream kiosk with the friendly ice cream man. He’s excited.

“ _ Barney _ .” Cory hisses, struggling to keep a hold of his lead. His music pumps in his ears, “Bloody dog.” He mutters.

He falls into someone. The someone calls out angrily and falls to the floor, pulling Cory with him. They land in a clatter on the hard ground.

“Fuck, man, watch where you’re goin’!” The someone groans, pushing Cory roughly off of him.

Over his music, Cory hears a loud bark. He realises, suddenly, he’s let go of Barney’s lead. 

“Shit.” Cory stands up, brushes down his jeans and shirt which are suddenly riddled with sand. It gets everywhere. He’s not even  _ on  _ the beach. He turns to the boy he knocked into. He pulls his name from memory- Naveed Haider. “ _ Me  _ watch where I’m going? You were on your phone. This is on you.” He looks over Naveed’s shoulder to see his dog bounding up around the slightly terrified ice cream man. Barney nicks the ice cream from his hand, crunches it one, then continues up the esplanade, spying a bird atop one of the benches, frightening, half to death, the elderly couple sitting there. 

The dog doesn’t stop there.

“Fuck’s  _ sake _ , Barney.” Cory shoves Naveed out his way and darts off after his dog. 

“Oi!” Naveed says, hurrying after him, “Oi, you didn’t even say sorreh. And you can’t just shove me like that.”

Barney makes it into the arcade after the squawking pigeon. He knocks down one kid, then another, leaving screaming, sobbing children behind him. He leaps over the desk where all the generally unwinnable prizes sit behind. The dog knocks half of them down. Rips a few of them to pieces. 

Naveed follows Cory into the arcade, panting desperately, reaches him and grabs his shoulder sharply. Frustratedly, Cory turns around.

“What do you want? I need to catch my dog.” He complains.

“You can’t just shove me like that.”

Cory rolls his eyes and goes to turn away. 

Naveed let’s out a disbelieving sort of gasp, “You’re unbelievable. I knew you were a dick, but fucking hell you’re rude.”

“Naveed-“

“Oh, you remember my name then? Shocker.” Naveed cuts him off.

“Please.” 

There’s a scream and a bark. Barney pushes passed a young woman, making her spill sticky coca cola all over herself.

“Somebody get that dog under control! Who owns him?”

Cory hurries away from Naveed, across the arcade to where his dog has got to. He has the pigeon pinned to the ground. A kid is screaming and shaking with tears in fear of possibly being about to witness a bird’s brutal murder.

“Barney!” Cory yells. He yanks the dog by the collar off the bird. The animal snarls slightly, feeling very robbed, having finally caught the funny grey flapping thing. But he let’s Cory pull him away. 

The bird looks a little sorry for itself, and lies, in shock, on the arcade floor. Hearing the commotion, the manager appears from the staff door nearby.

“Whatever is going on?” He asks, looking angry. “Dog’s aren’t allowed in here. Get him out.”

“I’m sorry. He ran in here. It wasn’t my fault.” Cory rambles, “Naveed he-“

“Naveed.” The manager turns to the boy, who, Cory only now notices, is still wearing his deep blue arcade polo shirt, “Get that bird out.”

“What?” Naveed objects, “But- but it’s not my fault sir. And I’m not on duty now, I just left. It was Cory, he barged into me-“

“Do I  _ look  _ like I give a-“ The manage wavers from swearing, seeing a number of children in the sudden crowd built up around the scene. 

Naveed swallows, and casts a dark scowl over at Cory, before passing him to pick up the bird. He reaches down to it, feeling rather sheepish under the watch of, probably, half the town. He’s about to touch it, when suddenly, it flaps, panicking, and shoots into the air. The crowd gasp, suddenly. Barney barks and tugs against Cory’s hold. The boy grips to him for dear life as the bird flies past. He bashes about, dizzily, against the machines as he flies to the door, setting a machine’s alarm off. Eventually, he flies out one of the open doors and disappears. 

Gradually, Barney calms down. The crowd are silent. Naveed looks down at the floor, avoiding his manager’s eyes.

“I don’t know  _ what  _ happened, to cause this mess, boys.” The man says, the crowd slowly beginning to dissipate. “But either way, you are both in huge trouble. And lad? What’s your name?”

Cory looks up and swallows, “Uh, Cory sir, Wilson.”

“Right.  _ Cory Wilson _ , you will be punished along with your side kick.” He nods to Naveed.

“He’s not my-“

“Stop.” The manager says, holding up a finger, “You will both be punished. Now, for the last time,  _ get _ .  _ That. Dog. OUT!” _

Cory’s eyes widen as the man shouts, and he nods hurriedly, and tugs Barney’s lead, and takes him out. Naveed, glancing at his manager shamefully, follows behind Cory. Surprisingly, Cory is waiting, when he gets out the shop, 

“Well thanks a fucking  _ lot _ , mate.”

“Don’t call me mate.” Naveed hisses.

“Whatever,  _ dude _ .” Cory replies, “Thanks to  _ you _ , I’m gonna having some stupid fucking punishment this summer.”

“How is it  _ my  _ fault, you can’t control your dog?” Naveed says with half a gasp.

“ _ You _ , were on your phone. You didn’t look where you were going.”

“Neither did you!” Naveed retorts, too stubborn to back down. “ _ God _ . Nothing can ever be your fault can it? Not Cory Wilson, no. He’s perfect.  _ Everyone _ loves him.” He throws his arms up dramatically.

Cory rolls his eyes, “That’s got nothing to do with-“

“Lads!” The arcade manage peers round the door, “Stop bickering outside. Elsewhere, go on. You’ve ruined my sales tonight enough, don’t you think?”

The two nod solemnly, and barely glance at each other, before then turning in opposite directions, and walking back down the esplanade, growing further from one another. 

Naveed wears a frown as he walks. Cory looks down at his dog, who appears rather unphased by the recent events, trotting along with his tongue hanging out. 

“What have you got me into, huh, Barney?”


	3. II

Sunlight streams in through the window and Barney leaps off his bead with a  _ thurump _ that wakes Cory up. He groans.

“Barney, it’s not breakfast time yet.” He mumbles, although is glad the heat of the dog has now left his legs. He feels sweaty and throws off the duvet. He stares over to his bedroom door as Barney sits by it, gazing over to him with round, marbly eyes. He groans again, and sits up, running a hand through clammy hair. 

Suddenly, a loud yell makes him jump. 

“ _ CORY! Get down ‘ere, now!” _

Sighing, Cory gets up, slips on some jeans hurriedly, and leaves his bedroom, Barney darting out the moment the door is opened. He clatters down the stairs and Cory follows, bracing himself. Somehow, he knows his dad has found out what happened yesterday. 

“What the  _ fuck  _ is this.” Kevin Wilson shoves a newspaper into his son’s chest as he wanders into the kitchen.

Cory looks down at it.

Shit.

** _Local Delinquents & Dog Destroy Our Arcade._ **

The article is plastered across the front page. The crowds in the arcade must have whipped their phones out during the Incident because there’s a photo of them on the front, Naveed flinching back as the bird flaps into the air, Barney tugging at his lead, Cory holding him tightly. It’d be almost amusing, if it weren’t himself on the cover.

“Have you  _ any  _ idea, how  _ humiliating  _ you are?” Kevin snaps at him, swiping the paper back from his hands. 

“I-I’m sorry.” Cory says, “But I swear, it weren’t my fault. It was Naveed. He wasn’t looking where he were going-“

“Save it.” Kevin says, “The bloke from the arcade called. He says you have to meet him and your school mate at the arcade where he’ll run through your punishment.”

“But I didn’t even  _ do  _ anything. Barney just saw a bird-“

“The bloody dog can be punished ‘n’ all for all I care. Never could stand ‘im. I want him out.”

“ _ Dad _ .” Cory swallows a lump in his throat. Barney’s a dopey, big old dog but he’s not really malicious. And Cory adores the stupid animal. Jordan did too. “Where will he go?”

“Wherever he wants. But not here.” Kevin says, “Now clear out. I can’t bare to look at you today.”

Cory swallows, scared of the tone in his father’s voice. He wants to point out that he hasn’t had breakfast yet, and he wasn’t planning to wear this shirt again but he doesn’t want to wind his dad up by going up to change. So he nods, silently, grabs Barney’s dog biscuits from the cupboard, slips into his shoes, and makes out the door, tapping his pocket to ensure he has keys, money and his phone. He doesn’t say goodbye to his dad, just slips on Barney’s lead and shuts the door behind them. 

Barney pads along the road, tongue hanging out, unaware it may be the last time he walks it. Cory sighs.

“I bet Naveed didn’t get this much of a telling off.” He mutters.

—

Cory was very wrong. Naveed does get a telling off. His mother is fuming. She throws the newspaper onto the table in front of him as the boy eats breakfast.

“What is this?” She demands. 

Naveed sighs as he sees it. It’s an awful picture of him. What will Nasreen say? She’ll probably laugh. So will Missy. Then they’ll probably tease him about Cory. Or something.

“Mum, I’m sorry.” Naveed says, “I can explain…”

“Can you?” She asks, “You can explain the pigeon, the dog and  _ that boy _ ?”

Naveed lets out a slightly strangled laugh, “That’s Cory Wilson.” He says, “Oh, mum don’t look at me like that I can’t stand him. I wasn’t even hanging out with him he walked into me. It was this whole thing. I barely know what happened anymore.” 

“Hmm.” She says, lips pursed.

His father comes in then, smiling. The smile that suggests he does not yet know what has happened.

“Mujahid, have you see this?” His mother asks, despite surely knowing he hasn’t. She waves the newspaper in his face.

Naveed’s dad takes it and squints, holding it back so he can read it, “Local delinquents and dog destroy our arcades.” He casts his eyes down to the picture, “ _ Naveed.” _

Naveed sighs and brushes his hands free of toast crumbs, “Dad, I’m sorry.” He says, “But it weren’t my fault.”

“What has gotten into you lately?” His dad drops the paper back onto the table and it makes a slapping sound. “Skipping dinners, coming home late, vandalising arcades.”

“I wasn’t  _ vandalising _ dad.” Naveed argues, “I weren’t even a part of it.”

His father shakes his head, “You’re not the  _ same  _ anymore Naveed. You’re not that shy, reserved kid you were before.”

“I’m a teenager dad.” He huffs and rolls his eyes, “This is what we do.”

“Not all teenagers end up on the front of  _ The Ackley Gazette _ .” Mujahid gestures over to the newspaper, Naveed’s agape face staring up from it. 

Naveed huffs and stands up.

“Don’t you sigh like that.” His mother snaps, “He’s right Naveed. You’re getting disrespectful.”

The phone suddenly rings. Naveed takes that as his cue to leave. He heads into the kitchen and ditches his plate in the sink. He hesitates, then runs the tap, squirts a splash of washing-up liquid onto the plate and washes it. It’ll only give his mother something else to moan about, if he doesn’t. 

While he wipes it, he listens to his mother on the phone. She doesn’t give away much, but he gets the feeling that she’s talking about him.

“Mmhmm. Absolutely. We were just thinking that we needed to teach the boy some manners. He’s almost lost control.”

Naveed rolls his eyes and puts his plate on the rack. Then he hurries over to the front door, puts on some shoes. He is about to leave when his mum appears, apparently finished on the phone.

“Your manager wants to see you. Has some punishment he wants you and that other lad to carry out.”

Naveed groans, frustratedly, “Fine.” He is due to work in an hour anyway (he was dreading it a little), and is already wearing his arcade polo shirt. “I’ll see you later.” He grumbles, opening the door. 

“Wait.” His mothers says, “You’re also grounded.”

“What.” Naveed stares at her, agape. “You can’t ground me.  _ Mum. _ I’m seventeen. I can do what I want.”

“Not under my roof.” His mother retorts.

Naveed laughs slightly, “That’s the most cliche line ever, you know that?”

“Well it’s true, Naveed. As soon as you have finished at the arcade, I want you back here. And we’ll have dinner as a family, and you will not stay out for hours. Yes?”

“What about Nas? Can I see her? Missy?” 

“Not after work you can’t, no.” His mother says, “You’ll be back here, yes?”

Naveed groans, “This is so  _ unfair. _ ”

“I mean it Naveed.”

“Alright.” He steps out the door, “I’ll see you later.” He slams it shut.

He scowls at the ground as he heads towards the esplanade. “Bloody dog.” He mumbles, “Bloody Cory Wilson.”

—

“My mum will absolutely say no.” Riz states, staring down at the old english sheep dog staring up at him from his doorstep, “Mate, you can’t keep him here.”

“Please.” Cory says, “Just for today, alright? I’ll sort something out, or, sneak him back home, I dunno. Hide him somewhere. You must have about a thousand spare rooms. You live in a-“

“It’s not a palace.” Riz says, but he grins. Cory’s always telling him that. “And none of the rooms are dog proof.”

Cory sighs and stares up at the pretty blue sky, small, hazy clouds about too. “Okay.” He tries to think, but there is nowhere else. He doesn’t trust Dan or Jake. He doesn’t trust Chloe Voyle, Jordan’s ex, or know her well enough, “I’ll… I’ll think of something else.” He feels a bit pathetic when his voice shakes. 

Barney, who’s sat patiently beside him looks up at him in surprise. He’s never heard Cory’s voice shake with tears outside of his bedroom. He can’t understand what’s wrong.

“Alright.” Riz says, sensing the panic rising in his friend, “Don’t worry. Please don’t. I’ll… I’ll manage him today, keep him outside or something. But he can’t stay tonight, you’ll have to take him.”

Cory breathes out, “Thank you. Thank you, thank you. Riz, I owe you one.” He hugs Riz suddenly, tightly, not their normal ‘bro hug’ but a proper, deep hug. Riz chuckles slightly awkwardly. 

“Okay, okay.” He pulls away, “You’re welcome, but you definitely owe me. Where are you going, anyway?”

“Arcade.” Cory replies, “Gotta do some kind of work because of all ‘drama last night.”

Riz grins, “I see. Have fun.”

“Hmm.” Cory says. He hands over Barney’s lead. The dog watches this in surprise. Cory looks down at him, “You be a good boy, a’ight?” He ruffles the dog’s fluffy head. “Best behaviour please.  _ No _ stunts like last night, okay. I’ll see you later.”

He stands back up and looks at Riz, “Thanks again, mate. I’ll pick him up later. I don’t know when I’ll finish but I’ll text you. I’ll be back ASAP.”

“Okay.” Riz says, “If he causes any trouble…”

“You’re mum’ll murder me.” Cory finishes with an understanding nod.

“If she don’t, Alya will.” His friend replies, “See ya. Come on then Barney.” 

Riz tugs on Barney’s lead and leads him round the back of the house. The dog looks back at Cory, confused and a little sad, then trots along after Riz. He knows Riz well enough to trust this is all perfectly okay, anyway.

—

Cory turns up a little late. Naveed is already there behind the main counter with the manager. The boy barely looks up when he sees Cory. 

“Ah.” The manager says, “The other one. Better not be this late all the time.”

_ All the time?  _ This already sounds terrible, Cory thinks. Plus, he’s spending the day with a boy who hates his guts for seemingly no reason at all.

“I was just explaining to Naveed.” The man huffs, at having to repeat himself again, “This, is the list of people you’ve upset…” He holds up a piece of paper. There are too many names. Cory doesn’t know any of them. “They all want something to make up for it. Community service, if you will.” The manager holds up a second sheet. “First, you will help me, and the ice cream man your dog attacked.”

“He was hungry.” Cory argues. The manager, who Cory notices on his tag says his name is “Dave”, ignores him. 

“You’ll be here everyday, 9-5 for two weeks, and I’ll let you know what you’re doing each day.”

“Two weeks?” Cory checks, “Seriously?”

Dave looks extremely serious, lips pressed tightly together somewhere beneath his beard. 

Cory puffs out a breath, glances at Naveed who still hasn’t looked at him. It kind of hurts. “Alright. What’s first?”

  
  


First, is Cory, standing outside the ice cream kiosk, dressed  _ as  _ an ice cream. 

“Ice cream! Ice cream! Get your ice cream here!” He calls, monotone. He literally couldn’t put more excitement into his voice if he tried, he thinks this must be it. He’s died. This is  _ hell _ . 

“You’ll scare customers  _ off  _ if you talk like that.” The ice cream man says, for possibly the tenth time this hour. 

It’s really a shame that Barney terrified him so much yesterday, because, really, he’s a nice guy. He nearly  _ always _ gave Barney something when they passed. He’s usually jolly. But he is undeniably pissed off with Cory now. 

Days seem to pass, before Naveed turns up, holding out a folded, alternate uniform to him with a mocking grin. Really, it hasn’t been days,merely hours. And it’s just lunch time.

“Change over time.” Naveed tells him. He’s back to wearing just his polo shirt and trousers. Cory eyes the costume in the boy’s hands. He knows what it is, saw Naveed in it before he headed to the kiosk. A bear, a ridiculous, fake looking bear costume and Cory is dreading it.

_ It’s to help draw in the customers you lost us all last night _ . The arcade manager had explained. Cory thinks they should all just get over it. 

Cory nods, “How do I even get out of this thing?” He fumbles vaguely around the costume for a zip but can’t find one. Naveed watches, amused. “You’re not gonna help?”

“No.” Naveed answers, still smiling. 

Cory huffs, “Naveed. Come on.”

The shorter boy rolls his eyes, but finally obliges when he catches the look in the ice cream man’s eyes, like he’ll give his manager a bad report if he doesn’t help. He gestures for Cory to turn around, and tugs down the zip along his back. Cory’s sweaty, his back warm under Naveed’s hand, he grimaces. This feels weird. 

“You’re welcome.” Naveed mutters, stepping away from him, glad for the cooler air between them.

“Thanks.” Cory says, belatedly, and shrugs off the awkward ice cream cone costume, holds it out to Naveed. It looks pretty withered and sorry for itself, with no one wearing it.

Naveed takes it, scowling a little, and hands his over to Cory. Cory eyes the bear costume in his hands. He hates this. He really,  _ really  _ hates this. His dad said what had happened last night was humiliating. Surely,  _ surely,  _ this is worse. 

“Well I’ll er… be off to the arcade then.” Cory says, walking away as Naveed puts his leg into the holes at the bottom of the ice cream cone costume. 

“Right.” Naveed says stiffly, not looking up.

Cory wanders off the little way down the esplanade to the arcade. He hears it before he reaches the door. The machine sound effects, children shouting, thumping music which, as he comes closer realises is actually a  _ 5 seconds of summer  _ song. He wanders inside.

It’s warm. It’s warm everywhere, but it’s worse in here. The crowds of people and the lack of air-conditioning don’t help. It’s heaving inside, Cory gently nudges passed people to get to the staff door where he means to put on the costume. He thinks it’s ridiculous, that he’s here to draw in customers. They don’t need it. If anything, Naveed, Barney and he had  _ increased _ customers. 

He changes quickly behind the door marked ‘staff’. He’s in a long sort of corridor, with a few rooms branching off of the far side of it, all red, closed doors. 

The bear costume does not have a zip. It’s tight and still warm from Naveed wearing it. This literally couldn’t get any worse, Cory’s sure of it. He puts the brown bear head over his own, takes a breath through his mouth, and pushes open the staff door.

“ _ Ah! Cory,  _ you under there? _ ” _ The manage greets him, “Hand these fliers out will you.” He shoves them into Cory’s hand and slaps him on the back, “Enjoy!”

—

It is safe to say the Cory did  _ not  _ ‘enjoy’. Naveed didn’t either. He meets Cory at the front of the arcade promptly at 5 in his ice cream costume. There’s real ice cream down his front- Cory daren’t ask if someone intentionally spilt it down him or it was an accident.

“You look ridiculous.” Naveed tells him, looking him up and down briefly.

“So do you.” Cory retorts. He’s not just saying it, either. An ice cream cone with arms and legs, and the vanilla ice cream itself with a brown face, is quite ridiculous. But then, at least Naveed’s face can be seen. Cory is positively sweltering beneath the bear head, with the smallest holes to see out of. He takes it off, knowing his hair must be dripping wet with sweat.

They both stand outside for a moment awkwardly. Cory carries his bear head under one arm. Then Naveed walks inside. Cory follows.

—

They take off and deposit the costumes in one of the staff rooms and collect their phones which they had to leave behind.

“Nice work, lads.” Dave tells them as the leave the staff area and pass the counter. “See you back here tomorrow.” He beams. Cory hates how much the man is enjoying this. 

The two walk out together.

“Hey, Naveed…” Cory starts.

“What.” Naveed asks, tone snappy and blunt. He stares determinedly at the ground.

“Could I ask a favour?”

Naveed sort of snorts. Not a great start.

“Barney, my dog…” Cory says anyway, “Dad kicked him out.”

Naveed stops walking and turns to look at him. 

“What? What are you saying?”

“Well would you… I mean, since this is kind of your fault I was er, hoping you could-“

“No way. Are ya kiddin’? A dog? My house?  _ Your  _ dog? That’s hilarious Cory.”

Cory puffs out a breath. He knew this was a long shot. “Ok. Ok. I’ll think of something.”

Naveed watches Cory- something he rarely does. The boy looks… sad. Scared. He’s never seen Cory like this ever. Like he’s human. He thinks for a moment. He almost wishes he doesn’t.

“There may be someone who’ll take him. I’m not sure if they will but we can ask…”

Cory’s eyes light up, “Really? Seriously?” He places his hands on Naveed’s shoulders as though going to hug him but changing his mind just before. “Thank you, mate, honestl-“

“Still not your mate.” Naveed reminds him, gently pushing Cory’s hands off him. “Where’s the dog now?”

“Riz’ place.” Cory answers as they begin to walk again. Naveed wolf whistles.

“He’s living a life of luxury then.” He says. “Why can’t he stay there?”

“His mum won’t have it. And he is, y’know, a bit of a nightmare sometimes. My dog, I mean, but Riz too.” 

Naveed hums in agreement but doesn’t laugh at the slight joke, “Look where he got us.” He gestures vaguely around them. 

“Well I mean… if you hadn’t walked into me…”

“Do you want my help or not?” Naveed cuts him off, tone sharp again, “Because, for your information, I am actually grounded, and I should be heading straight home, not rehousing a dumb old sheepdog.”

“Alright, alright.” Cory holds his hands up. “I’ll shut up.”

They both do. They walk in silence. Cory glances at Naveed. Behind him, the sun bounces off the sea like glitter. Naveed’s lips are pursed tightly together and he stares at the ground, wearing a scowl on his face. He doesn’t know why Naveed seems to hate him so much. He’s barely spoken to him, really, so Cory is sure he hadn’t said or done anything to upset Naveed. But he doesn’t really wish to ask, in case he decides not to help him. And he’s not sure he really wants to know. 

Riz’ house isn’t far, only a little further than the esplanade. It’s huge sits on it’s own beside a field. There’s a little lane beside it that leads to their own, private section of beach. The view outside of Riz’ bedroom is just  _ beach _ . Naveed’s never actually been to it before, but he’s seen pictures on instagram (Alya’s and Riz’) from parties and hang outs, so he shouldn’t really be taken back by it’s enormity. 

Cory walks into the driveway, and Naveed awkwardly follows, a little behind him. They both hear Barney bark before they see him. And they hear Riz shout his name before the animal comes flying into view from round the side of the house. He launches himself at Cory, who’s prepared enough to stay up right to welcome him.

“Hey buddy!”

“Oh it's just you, thank god.” Riz comes around the side of the house, slowing when he sees that Barney hasn’t escaped entirely.

“How’s he been?” Cory asks, now crouching down to his dog’s level to fuss him. Barney’s tail wags furiously, and he pants heavily in Cory’s face. Naveed can’t imagine that it’s pleasant.

“Fine.” Riz answers, “He only snuck into the house once.”

Cory smiles at Riz’ reply, and tries to move away from Barney’s tongue which licks at his face.

“Okay, boy, god.” Cory gently pushes the dog off and stands up. 

Barney pants and looks up at him, runs around his legs, and then sniffs around Naveed’s feet. Naveed watches him, and ruffles the animal’s head.

“Oh, hey Naveed.” Riz greets.

Naveed doesn’t hate Riz like he hates Cory, but he can’t say he  _ likes  _ him, either. Riz sort of idolises Cory, copies him, has messed around Missy and Nas’ siblings, probably to copy Cory, or something. And his family is so  _ painfully _ rich that he naturally envies him a little. But he seems friendly, at least. He smiles over at him and waves feebly.

“Naveed thinks he knows someone who’ll keep Barney for me.” Cory explains to Riz, taking Barney’s lead from him. 

“Oh, that’s cool.” Riz says, “So he won’t be back tomorrow?”

“Hopefully not.” Cory replies.

“Saw you both in the paper by the way.” The tall lad continues.

Naveed rolls his eyes, “Remember I have to be home like, 15 minutes ago.” He reminds Cory.

“Right.” Cory turns to Riz, “Thank you again mate, so much. I really hope he wasn’t too much of a hassle.” He fixes the lead onto Barney’s collar, “I’ll see you soon mate.”

“Tomorrow?” Riz asks.

Cory shrugs, “Have to do bloody community service all day for a million years now so maybe evening sometime?” 

“Community service?”

“Well, that’s what the arcade manager called it.” Cory answers, “But I’ll see you as soon as I can. Thanks again!”

Naveed is already waiting a few paces down the road. Cory hurried to catch up, Barney bounding along beside him. 

“You say I’m rude.” Cory says when he walks aside Naveed. 

Naveed frowns, “You are. I need to get home, Cory.”

“Look, what exactly will your parents actually do, if you’re late?” Cory asks.

Naveed thinks about this. He doesn’t think his parents will throw him out. The best they could do is confiscate his phone. He shrugs.

“Not ‘point.” Naveed says, “I do what I’m told.”

“Right.” Cory says, holding back a grin. He glances at Naveed and wishes he’d stop bloody scowling at the ground for two seconds. He sighs. “I am really grateful, that you’re, like, helping me.”

Naveed looks over at him momentarily, then stares back at the floor. “Good.” He kicks a stone to the side of the path. 

“Are you going to let me make proper conversation with you? Like ever?” Cory asks. Naveed just shrugs. 

They fall silent and Cory just follows as Naveed heads up a road of houses. 

“Where are we even going? Do I know them?” Cory asks.

“The booths’.” Naveed replies. They turn right into a quieter road.

“Oh!” Cory knows where Missy’s house is. Knows Missy reasonably well. “Are you sure she’ll take him?”

“Her and Hayley will love him.” Naveed responds, tickling behind Barney’s ears as the dog nudges at him.

“Like you already do.” Cory teases him, “You know I kinda thought you’d hate dogs.”

“Why? Because I was mad at you for letting go of your dog?”

“Well… no, but, you just, I dunno.” Cory shrugs, “I guess I just assumed.”

“You did.” Naveed replies, adding it to the list of reasons to hate Cory Wilson. 

They turn up the next road, where the Booth sisters live. Cory can’t think of another conversation starter, and it doesn’t seem worth trying anyway.

Naveed opens the back gate of the Booths’ house, and walks up to the back door, knocking gently twice.

“Missy?”

The door opens almost immediately. Missy stands there. 

“Hey Naveed! You alright?”

“Yeah.” He hugs his friend for a moment, “Uh, Cory has a favour to ask ya. I thought you’d say yes.”

Cory walks forward with Barney, feeling a little awkward. “Dad kicked Barney out.” 

The girl glances down at the fluffy dog, then back at Cory.

“Can you look after him? Obviously I’ll pay for his food. And I’ll take him in the morning and evening for walks. And most of the day when I can.”

Hayley’s head appears over Missy’s shoulder. “What’s happening?”

“Cory wants us to dog sit.” Missy replies.

“Really?” Hayley bursts passed her sister and drops down to the dog, cuddling him. Barney is surprised by the sudden affection, but wags his tail and sniffs the girl’s hair. “Cory we’d love to take him.”

“Heyley, don’t you think we should think about-“

“There ain’t owt to think about, Missy.” Hayley let’s go of Barney and stands, “We’ll keep him.”

Cory exhales with relief, “Thank you. So much. Seriously, I’m so grateful. I can go get his food for ya, and a few of his things. Wow, thank you, girls, really.”

“It’s not a problem.” Hayley says grinning.


	4. III

Cory comes to take Barney out for a morning walk as he promised the next morning. The dog is thrilled to see him, and doesn’t quite understand why he’s been moved between random houses. But his walk along the esplanade is normal, so he isn’t really bothered. Then he drops him back off at the Booths’, and heads to work. 

He beats Naveed this time, and surprises himself when he finds he’s early. Dave nods at him in greeting. He doesn’t beat Naveed by much though, for the boy wanders into the staff corridor as Cory leaves. They ignore each other, though Cory does glance back at him, watching him disappear into the little room where the staff’s lockers are. 

“You’ll both be at the fair today. Helping out with whatever needs doing.” Dave tells them, and then catches Cory’s look, “Their sales were hit  _ just  _ as hard as ours the other day. Everyone down here suffered, you know. The place was a ghost town once your dog rampaged through it.”

Cory struggles to believe this. And even though Naveed would love to blame Cory (on his dog’s behalf) for a huge loss of income, he doesn’t really believe it either. Still, neither voice these thoughts, and walk obediently down to the fair.

It’s warm out, warmer than yesterday, maybe even hot, and Cory thanks the skies that at least he’s not wearing those ugly bloody costumes today. The manager of the little fairground is expecting them, and smiles a watery smile at them both. There’s different music playing here, but the playlist is probably akin to the arcade one. The only real difference is the sound of rides- the bumper car sound effects, the merry go round tune, the squeals of children on the helter skelter. The quieter sound of golf balls being tapped by clubs on the crazy golf course.

They’re soon set to work. It all feels like a waste of time. Naveed stands in the ticket booth, which is quiet, considering the weather and the time of year, but he does not complain. He watches the brutal annihilations and betrayals on the bumper cars, the baby crying as the merry go round rotates and bobs up and down regardless or their discomfort. The children failing and cheating at crazy golf.

Cory’s over on the crazy golf. Bored, Naveed takes up watching him turn a little girl’s golf club the right way up. He points over to the hole and helps her line up the ball. She hits it. It rolls so close to the hole that Cory cheers her effort and gives her a high five. She looks over the moon. Disgustingly, Naveed catches himself smiling.

It’s just… he’s never seen Cory like that before. Kind and helpful and sweet. Cory has a kid, who must be coming up for two by now, but Naveed is sure, as far as he knows, Cory makes no effort with him. And now Naveed isn’t sure why, because he seems to be good with kids. The girl gets the ball in on her second shot. She celebrates like crazy. Cory watches like a proud father.

Cory, then, decides to take this moment to glance Naveed’s way, easily catching him looking. He walks over. Naveed stares at the little desk of the ticket kiosk, trying to stifle his smile. It’s maddening that it won’t go away.

“Ah, so you  _ do _ have more than two facial expressions.” Cory teases, leaning against the side of the ticket booth. “All I’ve seen from you is either a frown or a scowl.”

Naveed manages to dispel his grin, and stares, moodily at the desk. 

“Ah, come on. There’s no point frowning now.” Cory continues, “I’ve already seen you smile.”

“You’re a dick.” Naveed tells him, and looks up and stares at him as he says so, as though eye contact will give the phrase more of a creative meaning.

“You’re bloody stubborn.” Cory retorts. Naveed is staring back down at his desk, he fiddles with a pen. “Look, you know, this would be, like, a whole lot easier for us both if we were just  _ friends _ , right? Or at least tolerant of one another? No?”

Naveed huffs, stretches his back and looks up at Cory through the kiosk window, “It might be even easier, if we just stayed out of each other’s ways.”

With an eye roll, Cory pushes himself off of the kiosk, “Fine.” He says, “But then quit smiling dreamily at me from afar.” He adds as he walks away, back to the golf, and the little girl on her 6th hole. 

“Smiling dreamily.” Naveed mutters to himself, resting his chin on the palm of his hand, his other hand bouncing the pen sideways against the desk, “He wishes.”

——

They’re allowed their phones for lunch. Naveed sits on a bench just outside the fair and checks his messages, finding a miscall and texts from Nas. He calls her.

“Hey!” He says when she picks up almost immediately, “Sorry I missed your call, got work.”

“You told Cory Wilson Missy would take his dog in?” Nasreen starts.

“Oh. Er, I did, yeah.” He leans back on the bench. Cory is standing, leaning against the fence around the fair a little way off to eat his sandwich. Naveed knew he wanted to sit on the bench too, but he’d scowled enough to put Cory off. “I hope Missy’s okay with it he just… I don’t know he seemed desperate. Thought he could ask.”

“Okay but… you… helped Cory? Cory Wilson?”

“Nas.” He runs a hand through his short hair, “I’m just a nice person.” Somehow he can  _ hear  _ his best friend’s raised eyebrows, “Shut up.”

“I didn’t say anything.” Nasreen protests through the phone, “You haven’t even told me about what happened with you two. All I know is from the paper.”

Naveed sighs, “Has everyone seen that article?”

“It made front page. It’s the only paper the town has. Of course everyone’s seen it.”

Naveed groans. “Nas it’s the  _ worst. _ To make up for the so called damage we did, we have to work together on random shit along the esplanade for two weeks.” He glances briefly at Cory who doesn’t  _ seem  _ to be listening, but he wouldn’t put it passed him. He drops his voice, “I can’t work with Cory Wilson for two weeks.”

Nas chuckles, “Naveed. Is he  _ that  _ bad?”

“You know he is.” Naveed replies, still half-whispering. “I’m struggling and it’s only day two.”

Nasreen laughs a little, “Come over tonight. We’ll order pizza. Movie night? Missy too.”

“And Cory’s bloody dog?” Naveed asks, sort of joking, “Anyway I’d love to but I can’t. Parents grounded me after they saw the article.”

“What?  _ Naveed _ , you can’t let them do that.” There’s a sound of shuffling as she moves on the other side of the phone, “Rebel! Tell them they can’t do that. You’re not 10. You’re practically an adult now. Tell them they can’t.”

“Nas.” He half laughs, “It’s okay. I’ll just be good for the week and they should let it go. I was late yesterday because of cory and had to lie about talking to Dave afterwards.”

“Naveed!” Cory calls him from where he stands a few meters away, “Lunch is over.”

Naveed huffs, “Look, Nas, I’m sorry but I’ve got to go. I’ll talk to you later, yeah?”

Nasreen is quiet for a moment, as though she has so many more questions to ask, “Okay.” She says eventually, “Alright, I’ll talk to ya later. Have fun.”

“See you Nas.”

“Who were you talking to?” Cory asks as they head back into the fair for the rest of the afternoon.

“None of your business.” Naveed retorts.

“Alright.” Cory says, “Just making conversation.”

Naveed huffs and storms away back to the ticket booth, taking over from the man covering him over lunch.

“Alright.” 

“Yeah.” Naveed grumbles. His colleague rolls his eyes.

“What’s got you so moody?”

“I don’t know, the fact that I’m here, spending everyday with Cory Wilson.”

The man laughs, “Is it he that bad?”

“Yeah.” Naveed replies, realising he is the second person within the hour to ask him that. He sits at the stool as the man leaves it, “He’s the definition of straight popular privileged white guy.”

The man isn’t sure how to reply, an hovers by the door, “Well you’re not actually spending time with him at ‘moment.”

Naveed knows this is true. But Cory is only a few meters away, helping out on the helter skelter, “Well it feels like it. I know he’s there. That’s bad enough.”

—

Cory laughs so loudly. The fair isn’t that big, but he’s sure Cory’s laugh shouldn’t carry that far. It irks Naveed. 

“Very good, well done!” He hears Cory say to one kid. 

Naveed can’t take it. He slips off the stool in the ticket booth and leaves the small little space (it shouldn’t matter. There’s a lull in customers now, the fair closes soon.) He finds Cory by the helter skelter, complementing every child who slides down. Naveed leans against the fence around the merry go round, and watches him, frowning. Shame Cory doesn’t pay this much attention to his actual kid (or kids. Naveed wouldn’t put it past him to have at least 10.).

It doesn’t take long for Cory to notice Naveed watching, and when the children finish and there’s a moment of peace, he strolls over.

“Starting to think you’re obsessed with me.” Cory teases. It earns him an eyeroll from Naveed.

“Piss off. I could hear your voice from the ticket booth. You’re that loud.”

“Trying to listen in on me?” Cory grins at him. Naveed hates that grin, and a pinch of what he can only describe as anger, or disgust, stirs below his stomach. 

“Don’t be stupid.”

Cory lets out a soft laugh, “Naveed, man, look. This place is small. You could hear anyone from any part of this tiny space if you tried.”

Possibly, just maybe, Cory is right. But Naveed can’t just let Cory know that. 

“Or you’re so, attention seekingly loud that the whole esplanade can hear you.”

“Mhmm. You just keep telling yourself that.” Cory tells him, turning away as a 4 year old and their mother stand, waiting, by the helter skelter. Naveed watches him go.  _ God _ , he hates him.


	5. IV

Day three of their community service sees them at the lake the farthest end of the esplanade (the completely opposite side to the Nawaz house). They sit, the two of them, on the grass above the lake, two swan pedalos with them, one sitting in front of each of them.

It’s a swelteringly warm day, but there are trees around the edge of the lake on this side and it shelters them a little. Barney is with them today. Cory said the Booths were going out, and couldn’t look after him. Naveed doesn’t mind- he doesn’t hate the dog like he hates Cory- it’s not  _ his  _ fault that his owner is such a prick. 

Between the two of them, are pots of paint; white, orange, and a small pot of black. Missy always complains how the swans are getting worse for wear, how they’re rusty as fuck. She’ll probably be dead proud, when she learns that Naveed is giving them a fresh coat of paint. Then dead horrified, when she realises it were in Cory Wilson’s company. Naveed tries to paint the swan quietly, sweeping the paint brush adorned with white paint along one wing. Cory is still trying to talk to him. Like he won’t fucking get the message and leave him alone.

“You know I’ve not used these pedalos in years.” Cory starts, about his fifth attempt at some kind of communication since they’d started. Naveed doesn’t reply, it’s usually his best tactic in getting the boy to shut up, “Not since… not since mum left, I don’t think.”

Naveed looks up, suddenly at this. It’s common knowledge that Cory and Jordan live (or lived in Jordan’s case) with only their father, but he hadn’t really thought about it. That Cory might feel something about that. About not having his mum around. He doesn’t know when his mum left, either, but he shouldn’t ask. That’d be invasive, and engaging in conversation. 

“She loved them.” Cory continues, regardless of Naveed’s disinterest. He’s using the orange paint. Naveed watches the paint cover the rusty beak, making it shine and gleam in the sunlight peeking through the trees. “I think their first date were here.”

Naveed looks at Cory, leans away from his swan and lowers his brush to look. The boy appears half lost in thought- about his mum or swan painting remains uncertain. 

“Why are you telling me this?” Naveed asks. Curious, genuinely. 

Cory shrugs, as though he don’t know why, and don’t care. But then he stops and sits back from his swan too, something changing in his face that makes him say it again, but with words, this time, not with his shoulders, “I don’t know.” He looks at Naveed.

Naveed looks back at him, properly, something he rarely would do with Cory Wilson. He has brown eyes, a confused look in them, lips pursed slightly in thought, small beads of sweat on his forehead (Naveed can’t blame him for that though, even if he wanted. He knows he’s sweating too). He’s not noticed before but below Cory’s right eye, the boy has a mole. Naveed is uncertain what to do with this information. Perhaps he could paint over it with the white paint on his brush (it’s currently dripping into the grass), but it’s so close to his eye that Naveed fears he might paint his brown eyes white too. And he doesn’t want to half blind Cory Wilson, not  _ really _ \- think of the punishment he’d get; a grounding for life, and that’s just from his parents. Cory Wilson has a mole below his right eye- Naveed tucks this information to the back of his brain- he’ll find a use for it some day.

“I’ll just stop talking, I guess.” Cory says, and Naveed has almost forgotten what they were talking about in the first place.

“That’s what I’ve been trying to tell you this whole time.” Naveed points out, turning back to his swan, sweeping the paint carefully over the animal’s tail feathers.

“How does it feel to finally win?” Cory asks, splashing his brush into the water between the pots of paint.

Naveed doesn’t know how to answer (Cory shutting up doesn’t feel as much of a win as he thought it would). So he doesn’t.

After painting over half of a third swan, Cory groans and stretches back onto the grass, squinting up at the sky. Barney lifts his head and watches him fall, then drops his head again. Naveed watches him, feeling a bit the same- like he wants to collapse. 

“Join me, if you’d like.” Cory says, trying to hide a grin, staring up at the sky between the trees. Naveed should say no. But the grass looks inviting and his back aches from leaning over pedalo swans all day. He drops his paintbrush into the water and leans backwards. 

The grass tickles his bare arms. He sighs. Barney moves from the far side of Cory and sits himself in between the two boys, tail thumping on the ground. Naveed reaches over and pats the dog’s head. 

Naveed can’t believe he got here- lying in the grass beside Cory Wilson, stroking his dog. It  _ could  _ be worse. 

“You know me erm, me ex was called Barney.” Naveed says eventually, staring at the leaves above him, refusing to look across at Cory. 

Cory lets out a laugh, “I thought he were Matthew. You’ve had more than one boyfriend?”

Naveed rolls his eyes, “No. Are you that unobservant? Matthew’s real name  _ is  _ Barney.”

“What?” Cory’s eyebrows have furrowed (Not that Naveed is looking. Absolutely not). “I thought his surname were Barnes. He can’t be Barney Barnes.”

Slightly, Naveed laughs, “He is. Why’d you think he went by Matthew?”

Cory laughs too, “So, you hate me because my dog is named after your ex?”

“No.” Naveed tries to make his smile fall. Because he  _ hates  _ Cory, and you probably don’t smile so much around someone you hate, “That ain’t why I hate you.” 

Cory rolls over in the grass, onto his side, and lays on his arm, looking at Naveed, his face visible just above Barney’s body. “Why do you hate me, then?”

“Well you’re the reason I’m painting fucking pedalos right now.” Naveed points out.

“Yeah… but… you hated me before that, right? You don’t even follow me on instagram.” Cory closes his eyes briefly, shielding them from the sun for a moment. 

“Because Instagram is the true measure of liking someone.” Naveed replies, sarcastically, finding himself rolling onto his side to face Cory too. He sighs into the grass, “You just… you sleep with people and you don’t even care about them. And you’re pretentious. And selfish. And a stubborn git.”

“You’re a stubborn git.” Cory retorts.

Naveed falls back onto his back with a huff, “You think everyone’s obsessed with you.”

“No I don’t.” Cory rolls onto his back again too. “I don’t.”

“Right.”

Cory sighs. He sits up and runs a hand through his hair. The sun is exhausting him. He could do with a drink. 

“I’m gonna go and get a drink of water. Want one?” Cory asks. It almost takes Naveed by surprise,

“Uh, yeah sure.”

-

Nasreen giggles through the ipad speaker. 

“Nas.” Naveed complains, “It’s not funny.”

“It  _ is _ . Naveed you’ve gotten stuck in a romcom!” She says, Missy laughing in agreement beside her.

“Uh, less of the  _ rom _ please.” Naveed tells her, “That’s ridiculous.”

“Aw, come on Naveed. It’s a perfect set-up.” Nasreen says. The two girls are sitting on Nas’ bed, speaking to Naveed over Facetime.

“It’s not. Its a set up from hell.” Nav retorts.

“At least you’re not babysitting his dog.” Missy tells him.

Naveed huffs and sits back against his bed, “The dog isn’t a problem though. He’s alright.”

“You can ‘ardly talk. That’s coming from a cat person, your judgement’s flawed.” Missy wrinkles her nose, “And you haven’t had him over night.”

“Yeah, Naveed, I can hear him whining through the walls at midnight. The dog that is.” Nasreen adds.

“Okay, okay. First of all, both dogs and cats are equally valid. And secondly, the dog’s probably just missing Cory… somehow.” It’s Naveed’s turn to wrinkle his nose. 

They talk a little longer. About dogs and pedalos and how Naveed is still very much grounded, until Naveed eventually ends the call. He hasn’t told them everything, about today, about Cory. He hasn’t told them about how Cory had mentioned his mum. Or how Cory brought him a glass of water, and how he’d got Cory a second glass. He didn’t tell them that Cory swiped his phone, on the way out the arcade at the end of the day, and tapped in his phone number, between Naveed’s flailing hands that tried to grab it back. And he doesn’t tell them that he keeps looking at the number. And he looks at it when he hangs up the Facetime call. At the annoying fucking heart emoji Cory had the audacity to put by his name. At the message button his finger hovers over. 

He doesn’t tell them any of it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i did actually name cory’s dog barney and then afterwards remembered that that was matthew barnes’ real name and i was like /oops/ but i think it works now. also this is one of my fave chapters
> 
> hope you enjoyed this chapter xxx


	6. V

**TO CORY**

_ Uh, you gave me your number? for some reason? it’s naveed. _

**FROM CORY**

_ aww knew you couldn’t resist texting me ;) _

**TO CORY**

_ fuck off i’m not texting you. i’m just putting my number in your phon _e

**FROM CORY**

_ right bc giving your number to someone is a brilliant way to not text them _

**TO CORY**

_ fuck off _

**FROM CORY**

_ real creative language nav man. really tell why you’re doing english lit. are you trying to use the repitition technique? _

Naveed stares at the text in the darkness of the room that night. He shouldn’t reply. Really, really he shouldn’t. He has no reason to. But Cory knows how to wind him up in a way that will get him to reply. He doesn’t want to repeat himself and get more shit. So instead, imaginiatively, he says, 

**TO CORY**

_ shut up _

**FROM CORY**

_ isn’t that what you should do? yknow like, if you ‘weren’t’ texting me? _

**TO CORY**

_ i’m not texting you. go to sleep _

**FROM CORY**

_ you go to sleep _

Naveed huffs. He should sleep. He waits to see if the little white bubble comes up on the screen, but it doesn’t. It’s nearly 2am, he didn’t expect Cory to be awake when he texted, half-hoped he would find the text in the morning and therefore not feel the need to reply. Naveed turns off the phone. It locks with a soft click and plunges the room into darkness. He lays his head onto the pillow and closes his eyes.

His phone dings.

He opens one eye and turns the screen towards him, squints at it, and makes out Cory’s name. He’d taken the heart emoji out of the contact. He wasn’t going to leave it there. Did Cory really expect him to?

**FROM CORY**

_ goodnight _

Naveed rolls his eyes and turns the phone back off, reaching his arm across the bed to put the phone on his bedside table. Then he lays back onto the bed (he hasn’t gone under the duvet, it’s far too warm), closes his eyes, and eventually falls asleep. 

-

“You’re in the bowling complex today.” Dave tells Cory when he arrives to the arcade the next morning. He’s tired. He kept waking up and wondering if Naveed had texted him again (He hadn’t. Not after he told him good night. Why would he reply after that? Why did Cory want him to?) And he couldn’t sleep before Naveed had texted because his dad was drunk and the TV was loud. And Barney wasn’t with him. He didn’t bring Barney today, took him back to Missy after walking him. He wished he did bring him, at first, but now he’s glad. Dogs aren’t allowed in the bowling complex. 

Naveed is already in the building, behind the counter with one of the employees (who wear red polos). It’s dark and loud inside. There’s a Taylor Swift song playing. Half the bowling lanes are being used, and the sound of pins falling over echoes every few moments. The other side of the building is the ice rink, and a little cafe area. Cory gives it a glance as he wanders up to the counter that Naveed is behind.

“Cory Wilson?” The bowling employee asks. Their name tag reads “Amy”. Cory merely nods, casts a glance at Naveed only to find the boy avoiding his eyes, again.

“That’s me.”

“You’ll be in the back room this morning, as I was explaining to Naveed. You have to sort out the old shoes and pins. See what’s salvageable.”

It’s so boring. The room is small, almost a mere broom cupboard, two stools in the middle, and stacks and stacks of bowling shoes and bowling pins around them. There’s some cleaning brushes in front of them.

“I can’t believe my life has come to this.” Cory says, reluctantly picking up a small shoe and examining it. Could do with a clean but it’s not broken or anything. He gets to work.

“You’re telling me.” Naveed says, for once agreeing with him, and tossing some broken bowling pins into the corner. 

“Surely working in the arcade is no better.” Cory points out.

Naveed shrugs, “At least I got paid. I’m essentially suspended from my job until this service is out the way.”

“Really? Shit, man, that sucks.”

“Yeah, I know.” Naveed snaps. He examines another pin, brushes off some dust, and puts it in the ‘salvageable’ corner. 

“I’m sorry. About getting you into this. About Barney ruining our summers.” 

Naveed shakes his head, “No it’s… I were stubborn and rude. It were my fault too. I was looking at my phone… _ Don’t _look at me like that.”

“Like what?” Cory asks, hiding a laugh and throwing his arms up defensively. “I’m not looking like anything.”

“You have this… I told you so look about ya.” Naveed says. Then, “How did this not go straight in the bin?” It’s a bowling pin with a large hole in it.

“How’d that even happen?” Cory asks, leaning forward to look at it. Naveed glances up at him- how close he is- then looks back at the pin and shrugs,

“Fuck knows. The more I learn about the esplanade the more scared I am.” Naveed says, launching it over with the other rejects. “You don’t even _ want _to know how the arcade machines con money out of ya.”

Cory shrugs and grimaces at a broken, grey old shoe, “I’m sure I can imagine it.”

“Trust me. You can’t.” Naveed replies, “This one’s okay, yeah?”

Cory looks at the pin and nods. Naveed throws it on the keep pile. Cory winces, “Throw ‘em about like that and they won’t be okay.”

“Shut up.” Naveed replies. He doesn’t really sound like he means it though. Cory realises, suddenly, that they’ve actually been talking. _ Shocker _.

“You like that phrase don’t ya?” Cory teases, “That and fuck off.”

“You just need to hear them a lot.” Naveed retorts smoothly. 

Cory fakes a pout, then picks up a particularly gross shoe, pink chewing gum dangling from the sole. “I’m not cleaning that.” He says, “I’ll actually throw up.”

Naveed half laughs, “Just break it and toss it.”

“Break it? What if there’re cameras and that?” Cory looks around expectantly, but sees no evidence of a camera (it’s a literal closet. Why _ would _there be a camera?).

“There isn’t, give it ‘ere.” Naveed grabs the shoe and pushes either end, as though trying to snap it in half. He pushes on both ends as hard as he can. It bends but that’s all.

“That all you’ve got?” Cory asks, smirking, “Give it back.” He takes the shoe from Naveed and presses it into his hands. It snaps. “There.” He throws it on the reject pile. The chewing gum instantly attaches to another shoe in the pile. He grimaces. Naveed laughs.

—

“Um… gotta take Barney for a walk tonight.” Cory says as they head back to the arcade after a day of bowling shoes and pins and dust and cobwebs (and chewing gum). “You can come with, if you want like.”

Naveed stares at the ground, hands in his pockets. “You forget that I’m grounded.”

“What? Still? My dad would’ve given up by now. Can’t stand me or Jord in about ‘house for too long.” 

Naveed shrugs, “I’m probably less annoying, that’s why.”

Cory can’t help but laugh, “You think?”

“Anyway grounded or not, why would I walk your dog with you?”

“I were just asking.” Cory says as they enter the arcade and head to the staff rooms.

—

Naveed considers texting Cory again that night and can’t really believe what he’s thinking.

“_ Naveed. _” His mother scolds from across the dinner table, “Phone away at dinner. This is family time.”

The boy rolls his eyes and places his phone down on the table beside his plate. He tries to ignore it. 5 minutes later it pings with a message, he glances over. Of _ course _it’s from Cory. He drops his fork and picks it up.

“Naveed.” His father this time. He glances at him.

“It could be important.” Naveed tells him. It’s not. It’s Cory, it couldn’t be _ less _ important. He opens the text- a photo. He smiles involuntarily.

The picture is of Barney the dog, tail blurred, mid wag, as he sits on the grassy edge of the hills, Ackley Bridge stretching out in the view behind him. There’s a caption too;

**FROM CORY**

_ barney’s upset you couldn’t join us tonight. how’s being grounded? _

He hurriedly types a reply, feeling both his parents glaring. 

**TO CORY**

_ being grounded sucks. i’m having dinner and i swear my phone is about to get confiscated. _

**FROM CORY**

_ oh shit, man, sorry, i’ll let you eat, enjoy _

He puts his phone down and looks at his parents, “Sorry.” He says, “It’s just Nas. I told her I was having dinner.”

His mother huffs. His father shakes his head. Naveed decides not to say anything more. It’s a tense, silent meal.   


That night his phone glows in his eyes in the dark of his bedroom. Cory Wilson texts him about nothing. And Naveed finds himself replying.

**FROM CORY**

_ I can’t believe how gross some of them shoes were _

**TO CORY**

_ why the hell did they even keep them? _

**FROM CORY**

_ idk but it’s GROSS _

**TO CORY**

_ aren’t you tired? _

**FROM CORY**

_ i’m not used to sleeping without Barney. and like, insomnia _

They talk for a while. Naveed hates every moment of it. He knows he’ll have a headache when he wakes up. But he keeps replying anyway. He doesn’t know what he’s doing.

Cory doesn’t know what he’s doing either. But he’s smiling and he feels light and warm everytime Naveed replies to him. He decides it’s because it feels like a win. Like Naveed clearly doesn’t hate him. And he’s won him over. Like he does everyone else. He tells himself that’s the reason. But he knows it’s really nothing of the sort.

—

They’re to work on the ice rink side of the bowling complex the following day. They have Naveed do lessons for some of the younger children, and Cory works behind the main counter in the food court. He finds himself watching Naveed.

He’s… Naveed is super fucking graceful on the ice. He didn’t know that Naveed could skate. He didn’t know much about Naveed at all (He still doesn’t. This guy is so fucking stubborn about talking to him). He wishes he got to know him before. When they were put next to each other in the biology seating plan for half a term in year 11. He should have talked to him. He’s never met anyone like him. 

“Can I get a glass of tap water?” A young girl asks, suddenly appearing in Cory’s line of view.

“Uh, yeah sure, I’ll get that for you now.” Cory tells her, casting one last glance over her shoulder at Naveed gliding across the rink holding a little girl’s hand, before turning behind him to the sink. 

He pours her water and hands it to the young girl, then looks back at Naveed.

“Who are you watching?” The girl asks, turning around, “That girl over there?”

Cory’s eyes leave Naveed and he follows the girl’s line of site to another young woman over to the right, skating just as gracefully as Naveed.

“Oh, uh, no I were looking at that guy actually, the one doing the kids lesson.” Cory answers.

“Oh.” The girls says, then, “_ Oh _.” 

Something about that ‘oh’, Cory knows means _ you’re into him not the girl _and he laughs gently. 

“No, no he’s a friend.” He says, because ‘he hates me but we have to work together because of some messy situation which you surely read about in the paper’ is far too complicated, “I’m waiting for him to fall over.” He adds, telling himself that’s exactly what he was doing.

The young girl laughs a little, “I see.” She smiles at him awkwardly, “Well uh, thank you for the water.” She wanders off.

Cory swallows, and looks back over at Naveed, who’s got the few children lined up, and is having them skating passed him to give him a high five. He can feel a little uncertainty in his chest now. Like maybe he _ should _ be watching the lady. Like that’s what he’d normally do. Like that’s what is expected. And the girl _ is _ graceful, and good at skating, Cory notes this. But Naveed… Naveed is _ Naveed. _

One of the young boys Naveed is with nearly slips and Naveed catches him and steadies him, and then holds him a little way round the ice before his confidence has come back. As he lets the child skate off on his own again, he glances over to where Cory is watching. Their eyes meet. Cory smiles weakly. Naveed just stares. It doesn’t look like he scowls though, that’s something. 

—

“I didn’t know you were an ice skater.” Cory points out on their way out of the ice rink at the end of the day.

“Why would ya? You don’t pay attention to anyone but yerself.” Naveed tells him pointedly.

Cory frowns at the floor, “Why do you say things like that? It’s not… you don’t know me, Naveed. At all.”

Naveed stops halfway up the esplanade to face him, “You’re not hard to know, Cory. You’re obviously a walking popular straight guy cliche. You’re egotistic, attention seeking, full of self pity. And you have parental issues. So does everyone. You’re not special.”

Maybe it shouldn’t hurt _ this _much. Maybe it should. But Cory feels like someone’s reached through his chest, pulled his heart right through the hole and squeezed it dry. He swallows tears. Blinks.

“Of course I’m not special.” Cory says, quietly. So quietly, so avoidant of Naveed’s eyes that the shorter lad suddenly regrets it. He purses his lips as though trying to suck the words back in. 

Before Naveed can say anything, Cory stalks off ahead of him to the arcade, walking briskly. Naveed sighs.

“Cory.” He calls after him, half frustrated. It was uncalled for, what he said. And possibly not even _ true _. Shit. Shit shit shit. “Cory.” He hurries up the path and grabs his shoulder.

“Get off me.” Cory half hisses, shoving off Naveed’s hand, “Just leave it out, yeah?” 

The taller boy disappears into the arcade. Naveed follows at a distance, and when Cory enters the staff area to retrieve his phone, Naveed doesn’t intrude, waits outside. 

“Cory I’m sor-“ He tries when Cory reemerges.

Cory doesn’t even glance at him, let alone say anything. He stalks out of the arcade. Naveed leans against the arcade wall and sighs up to the ceiling, spying a cobweb up there as he does so. He feels terrible. What he said… that’s not even _ like _him. He didn’t mean it. What is Cory Wilson doing to him?

When he gets home he texts Cory that he’s sorry. And during dinner he glances at his phone so much that his parents tell him to stop before he breaks his neck. He texts Cory again the next night but he doesn’t reply. It doesn’t even say Cory’s read it. 

He barely sleeps that night.


	7. VI

Naveed is standing outside Missy’s house the next morning, leaning against the fence. Cory stops when he sees him, and stares.  _ What the fuck? _

Naveed looks up when he hears Cory stop suddenly on the concrete. He smiles weakly over at him. It’s early. Barely 8am and Cory wonders how long Naveed has been there. And why he’s there. And why he’s forgotten how to breathe. He swallows and walks over to him.

“Well look who it is.” Cory greets.

Naveed smiles weakly again. He’s barely sure what he’s actually doing here. He just knows that he felt terrible. And that work would be even more of a hell if Cory scowled as much as he himself did. And he wants to apologise, and this is the only way he thinks Cory will listen.

“Cory, listen.” Naveed starts. He’s sort of rehearsed this. Since he’s been waiting here. “I’m sorry. I were out of order. You’re right I barely know you. I shouldn’t of said those things, I assumed and I don’t know I’m probably wrong and-“

“Is that all?” Cory cuts him off.

Naveed swallows, “Um. I guess. But please believe I’m really sor-“

“Yeah whatever.” Cory says, opening the Booths’ back gate, “Apology accepted. You can go now.”

“Oh I were… I were going to walk with ya.”

Cory turns and smiles, “Yeah?” Naveed just nods.

He follows Cory into Missy’s back yard (sort of an area of 2x2 meters, tiled.) The boy takes a key from his pocket.

“You have a key to the Booths’?” 

“Missy were fed up with me and Barney wakin’ them up every morning.” He answers, turning the key in the lock. 

Barney darts out the door at Cory, barking once then twice before Cory hurriedly shushes him, bends down and cuddles him,

“Hey boy.” He ruffles the dog’s fur, and Naveed watches Barney’s tail wag hurriedly. As though feeling the stare, Barney turns around to look at Naveed, and darts over to say hello.

He does remember Naveed from the few meetings they’ve had, so the boy receives a lick to his trousers, and paws on his stomach. Naveed chuckles and strokes him. Cory puts on Barney’s lead.

“Come on then.” He says, tugging at the lead, “Walkies.” He glances up at Naveed and smiles. Naveed returns it. 

They walk slowly down the hilly street to the coast. They’re quiet for a while, and Naveed’s hands press into his pockets. He can feel Cory glancing at him every five seconds. 

“So what made you come?” Cory asks eventually, “On the walk like?”

Naveed shrugs, “Wanted to apologise. And make up for not coming the other day.”

“You wanted to see me that badly?”

Naveed nudges him sharply in the arm, “You wish.”

Cory bites his lips for a moment, Naveed watches, waiting for him to speak. “So what, your grounding don’t include mornings?”

“Told mum I had to go in earlier today.” Naveed tells him. Cory smiles slightly. 

“You lied just so you could see me?” Cory asks. Naveed rolls his eyes at the smirk.

“Don’t flatter yourself.” Naveed says, “I felt bad. Don’t expect me to do this every day.”

“Right.” Cory says, but he grins over at Naveed and the shorter boy can’t help but smile back. 

Though it is early, it is warm out and the sun is bright and clouds are few. The sea looks calm from the hilly road, and the tide’s out, the sea stretching out for what seems like miles. 

They reach the esplanade and walk from the lake’s end. The geese are out, and Barney eyes them as they pass but doesn’t try to chase them.

“He’s actually really obedient.” Naveed remarks, “What were wrong with him that night. You know, with ‘pigeon.” 

Cory shrugs, “I think he was a bit stressed out. My dad were drunk before I left and… he gets violent sometimes. It scares Barney.” 

“What do you mean he gets violent? You mean like… on you?” Naveed asks slowly, then, “You don’t have to answer that. I’m sorry.”

“It’s fine. I mean, that night, I left before he got bad, didn’t I? But other times… yeah. It were worse for Jordan. But now he’s gone college and, I’m the only punching bag left. And Barney, but if he dared hurt him I think I could kill him.”

Naveed takes this in and swallows. He had no idea. “I’m sorry, that’s… god. What I said yesterday, about parental issues being something everyone has I… you know it doesn’t include that right. That ain’t right. Like, at  _ all _ . Cory…” 

“Yeah.” Cory says, “You didn’t know all that yesterday it’s fine.  _ I’m  _ fine.”

“No you’re not. That’s a  _ shit,  _ awful situation no kid should go through.” Naveed continues, “Have you told anyone?”

“No.” Cory says, then sighs, “Me and Jord nearly did once. But, he bailed. And, well I don’t have to protect him anymore so it don’t matter.”

“What about protecting yourself?” Naveed points out.

“I’m fine.” Cory repeats.

“You’re not. You can’t be. It’s awful, Cory, you can’t live like that.” 

“Look, I’m rarely even at the ‘ouse now am I? And I don’t know, I’ll move out soon. Get a proper place where Barney can live with me. It’ll be fine.”

Naveed looks at him. They’ve reached the arcade by now. “If you… I absolutely still hate you but if you need to get out, you can… you can crash at mine.”

Cory laughs, “Your parents would love that.” 

“I mean it though.” Naveed says, “You shouldn’t be dealing with that.”

Cory nods, “Okay, I’ll keep it in mind.” 

“You not gonna say thank you?”

With a smile, Cory says, “And he’s back.” It earns a shove from Naveed, “Seriously, thank you.” Naveed nods.

Just before they pass, Dave arrives at the front of the arcade and unlocks the door.

“You lads are very early today aren’t ya?”

“Just going for a walk, Sir.” Cory tells him, “What are we doing today?”

“Gardening I think.”

“Gardening?”

“Yep.” Dave opens the arcade door, “Grass ‘round here needs a mow. The lake area needs weedin’.”

“You don’t have a gardener around here?” Naveed asks.

“On holiday, son.” Dave replies. Of course they are. “See you in,” He glances at his watch, “30 minutes.”

“May as well start now.” Naveed says, “Right?” He glances at Cory who shrugs.

“Barney can stick around today right?” Cory checks with him, hopefully.

“Fine. Just keep him under control.” Dave warns thinly, “Mower’s out back, come on.”

—

Cory mows. Naveed weeds. He glances over at Cory occasionally, thinking about what he said. He feels terrible. How a father can hurt his children. And get away with it? He finds himself a little worried about his enemy (if he can call him that. He hates him, but enemy is pushing it. And sounds a bit primary school-ish), because no one deserves that. No one.

Barney is with Naveed, rather than Cory, for the sound of the mower hurts his ears and he wants to keep away. Besides, Naveed’s job is far more exciting. It’s like digging, though he isn’t sure what Naveed is really pulling up. It’s not like any bones have been buried here. And the green leaves in Naveed’s bucket are most uninteresting to a dog. Still he enjoys getting his paws covered in dirt and getting in Naveed’s way. He likes this boy Cory’s seemingly made friends with. And Naveed likes him, too.

It’s blissfully noticeable when the lawnmower turns off and the esplanade is met with a beautiful warm silence. The sea rushes into the shore ahead of them. Naveed leans back against the grass, hands out behind him. He stares up at the cloudless sky, aware vaguely of Cory taking the mower back to the small building behind the arcade. Barney sniffs around Naveed’s bucket and up-turns it.

“Hey!” Naveed says, sitting up and pushing the weeds back in and standing the bucket back up, “You’re silly.” He tells Barney, ruffling the fur under his ears nonetheless. 

“Naveed!” Cory calls across the grass meters away from him, “Help me rake the cut grass?” He holds up a cheap looking plastic rake.

Naveed rolls his eyes but stands up, taking his bucket full of weeds and depositing them in the compost heap behind the arcade when he reaches it. Barney goes around his heels, and then Cory’s, tail wagging.

“Here.” Cory hands him a rake. 

“How come you get the good one?” Naveed asks, eyeing the metal rake in Cory’s left hand. (It isn’t news to him that Cory is left handed. He learnt this a couple years ago when they were sat next to each other in class, and their elbows kept knocking.)

Cory shrugs, “You can have this one if you want.” He offers it out to Naveed.

“No, it’s fine, you get the best one. I’ll get the less important one, I get it.”

“Naveed.” Cory says, “It’s not that deep.”

Naveed knows it probably isn’t, and he’s just being petty. But Cory  _ is  _ selfish and he probably  _ does  _ think he’s more important than Naveed. So he just glares at him and walks across the grass to the far end, raking the mown grass. 

Barney wanders off, after being poked a couple times by both of the boys’ rakes, and starts digging under a tree by the lake, tail wagging. He discovers an old dog ball, and drags it out onto the short, just-been-raked-by-Naveed grass. The dog tucks it into his mouth and scampers over to Cory, dropping the old ball by his feet.

Cory looks at it and smiles, picking it up. 

“You don’t even know how to play fetch but go on.” He throws the ball across the grass and Barney runs after it. He settles down in the grass and chews the ball. 

Naveed passes him with the rack and grins down at him,

“What’ve you got?” Naveed asks him, causing the dog to look up at him, the ball in his mouth. He bends down to the dog and tugs the ball from his mouth. Barney sits up and looks at him expectantly, waiting for Naveed to throw it.

He belts the ball across the grass over to where Cory is, and the dog bounds after it. Naveed watches, and Cory looks up and meets his eyes, grins. They continue to throw the ball back and forth across the grass until the raking brings the two of them together in the middle. Cory nudges him in the hips with the end of his rake. Naveed scowls. 

“You still mad you have a plastic rake?” Cory asks. Naveed rolls his eyes,

“No.” He says. But he still feels bitter, and pissed off. But that’s how all these days have been. Because he’s with Cory. 

“Wouldn’t you just rather we got along?” Cory asks.

Naveed frowns at him, then down at the pile of cut grass surrounding them. 

“No point.” He says, scooping some of the grass into his arms.

“You’re gonna get grass stained.” Cory tells him.

“ _ You’re _ gonna get grass stained.” Naveed retorts, feebly chucking the grass from his arms over Cory. 

“Hey!” The taller lad catches some of the grass and chucks it back.

And so begins a grass fight. Barney barks around them, trying to catch half the falling grass in his mouth. He jumps up at Cory and he jumps at Naveed. And Naveed falls into the grass from Barney’s weight. He hears Cory laugh and throws grass up to him (this backfires, though. It falls back onto his face.)

“Mate.” Cory lightly chuckles and holds a hand down to him. 

Naveed eyes it, then stands up by himself, “Still not your mate.” 

Cory smiles but it feels more like wincing. Awkwardly he drops his hand and brushes the grass from his shirt, not looking at Naveed but feeling him there. He’s so aware of him, bending down and gathering more grass into his arms. He’s close enough to touch, to whisper and for Naveed to hear him. Close enough to-

“Come on.” Naveed says, “Let’s get this to compost. We could finish early.” He walks away, and Cory watches him go, heart somehow twisting. He swallows, then gathers some grass in his own arms.

Dave reluctantly lets them go early, upon seeing the freshly cut grass and and clear verge by the lake. He watches them walk out the staff room of the arcade together with pursed lips. They don’t look at each other, Naveed stares at the floor and Cory, his phone, but they’re walking together and Dave notices that this is new.

They walk down the esplanade a little way together, Barney on his lead strolling ahead of them.

“Do you want an ice cream?” Cory asks as they reach the ice cream kiosk. Barney barks up at the man.

“I’m fine.” Naveed replies, staring at his phone, typing. 

Cory shrugs and orders one for himself. Barney puts his front paws up on the kiosk and looks at the gentleman hopefully. The man eyes him,

“Not sure you should get any.” He says to the dog.

“Come on sir, he were just having an off day last time.” Cory says, “He’s really sorry.”

“Hmm.” But the man puts half a scoop on a plate and puts it in front of the kiosk. Barney licks it up happily.

“And what can I get you Cory?”

Cory orders, waves it in front of Naveed’s face (he’s surprised the boy is still here, and isn’t half away across the town away from him by now). 

“Sure you don’t want one?” Cory asks.

Naveed eyes it with half a frown on his face, “I’m fine.”

Cory raises his eyebrows, “Then why are you still here?” 

“I’m texting.” Naveed replies, pointedly fixing his eyes to his phone screen, watching the three dots meaning Nas is replying.

“Naveed just… take the ice cream.”

Naveed looks up at him, holds his gaze for a moment. “Fine.” He takes the mint chocolate chip ice cream from Cory’s hand, completely ignoring the way their pinky fingers brush together. (He absolutely doesn’t notice it at all.) “Thank you.” He mutters.

Cory nods and orders himself another ice cream. He takes the second mint choc chip ice cream into his hands, thanks the ice cream man, and continues walking. Naveed walks slowly beside him, texting.

“Who are you messaging?” Cory asks.

“Nas.” Then he looks up, “It’s none of your business.” He says.

“Alright! I were only asking.” He takes a small bite of the cold ice cream and ignores the chill to his teeth. 

“I told her I can meet up with her.” Naveed adds, “So I’ll er, see you.”

“Oh.” Cory tries to ignore the way his chest sinks. It’s stupid. Because Naveed hates him, and he shouldn’t enjoy spending time with someone who hates him. Why would he? “Okay, erm, yeah, see you tomorrow.”

Naveed nods once. He turns to go then pauses, leans down and gives Barney a pat on the head, then turns and walks back down the esplanade. Cory pauses, and turns around and watches him go, throat thick with  _ something _ .

He isn’t sure what he’s thinking anymore.

Nasreen and Missy sit on the bench outside the fun fair. Nas greets him with a strong hug that sends him stumbling half a step backwards, struggling to keep his ice cream in his hand. He laughs slightly.

“Anyone would think you haven’t seen me in 5 years.” He says, hugging her back tightly with his free hand, ice cream hand outstretched away from them to avoid getting caught in Nas’ hair.

“It feels like it.” Nas says softly against him, “I missed ya.”

“Missed you too.” Naveed says, quickly hugging Missy aswell.

“Didn’t think to get us an ice cream?” Missy points out, nodding to the cone in Nav’s hand. 

“Oh er… Cory bought this for me.” Naveed explains, feeling his cheeks warm up. “Well he sort of made me take it .”

Missy looks at him with this  _ look _ , “Cory Wilson is buying you ice creams now?”

“It’s nothin’.” Naveed tells her. He means it. How can it mean anything? Nothing Cory does really means anything. “Seriously. Ugh, look he gives his  _ dog  _ ice cream.”

“Yeah and he’s bloody in love with that dog.” Missy points out.

“Ha.” Naveed replies sarcastically, licking some of the ice cream. “Look it’s, it’s not that deep. He were buying ice cream and I just  _ happened _ to be there.”

“Look whatever, forget Cory Wilson.” Nas says, tucking her arm around Naveed’s, “You’ve an afternoon free of him. What shall we do?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> fun drinking game... take a shot every time i say “ice cream” in this fic


	8. VII

Cory awakens to the slam of a door and he sits up sharply. He blinks in the morning light and hears footsteps downstairs- his father. His father wasn’t there last night and Cory felt glad- so he didn’t text him. He had texted Naveed though, asking if he wanted to walk with he and Barney. He knew he’d say no- Naveed said he wouldn’t walk with him again yesterday morning. And he is grounded. But he tried anyway. 

“Cory?” His father’s voice yells up the stairs and Cory swallows.

“Yeah?” He calls down weakly, slipping out of bed to dress. His dad doesn’t reply to him. 

When he is dressed, red hoodie under his arm, he stands by his bedroom door, hesitating. He’s stupidly scared. His dad’s never… never hurt him in the morning. Never been hugely angry then. But still, he’s apprehensive. Taking a breath, he opens the door, edges to the stairs and patters down them calmly. 

Scared of his own father… that’s ridiculous.

Kevin Wilson is in the kitchen.

“I need you to go shopping now you’re finally up.” He snaps, slamming shut a cupboard door.

Cory swallows, “Well I… I can’t, dad, I have that community service thing. You know after-“

“Still?” His dad asks, “Keeping you a bloody long time aren’t they?”

“It’s only been 6 days dad.” Cory says, realising suddenly it is to be a week today since they had begun. He’s already halfway through… he doesn’t know how to feel about that. It feels like forever and also no time at all.

“Well get some food on the way back alright?”

Cory swallows, “Can’t… can’t you? What are you doing today?” It’s Sunday today, and even if Kevin had a job, he’d likely not be working today.

“I’ve asked you, ain’t I?” Kevin snaps, “Now go to work.”

Cory leaves the house with no breakfast, and heads to Missy’s. He smiles when he gets there. Naveed. Outside Missy’s house. Cory feels suddenly lighter.

“Thought you weren’t joining me again.” Cory reminds him, heading through Missy’s back gate. Naveed doesn’t reply, remains outside the Booth’s house, listening to Barney’s sharp excited barks as he greets Cory.

The boy appears and closes Missy’s gate behind he and his dog. They begin to walk.

“Couldn’t sleep.” Naveed says eventually, breaking the warm silence. “I just…” He shrugs. He kept… he kept thinking about Cory. About what he had said about his dad. And just… just about Cory. About his annoying fucking smirks. And his brown eyes. That mole under his right eye Naveed keeps reminding himself of, even though knowing of it is useless to him. “Just couldn’t sleep.” He decides on saying.

Cory just nods. “My dad wasn’t in last night.” He says, “I slept great.” He looks over at Naveed and feels something stir inside of him. Or like a light turned on. Or something? He doesn’t know. Naveed’s hands are in his pocket. He stares, still, at the ground. And sunlight bounces off him like some… like… like something beautiful? Cory looks at down at the ground too, purses his lips.

“What do you think we’re doing today?” Naveed asks eventually, breaking the silence that had fallen again.

Cory shrugs, “Fuck knows. Something as dumb as gardening.”

Naveed hums in agreement, “They’re going to run out of things for us to do eventually.”

“You would like to think so.” Cory replies. 

The sea is glowing this morning. It always is but somehow, something feels different today. They walk slowly along the front, behind the sea that swooshes quietly in the background. Cory leads them up the pier. It is always longer than anticipated, and the wind grows stronger the further they walk. 

“This always feels like a fucking waste of space don’t it.” Cory starts, gesturing around them.

“Mmm.” Naveed agrees, “But… I kind of like it. It makes the place quieter.”

Cory shrugs.

They reach the end and Cory sits down on the old wooden panels. Naveed looks down at him for a moment, down at the wood skeptically, then joins him. Barney lies between them, panting. 

“How was your afternoon yesterday?” Cory asks, “Mine were boring.” He did visit Riz though- it was nice to see him.

“Mine was good.” Naveed replies, tentatively, aware he’s conversing civilly with the boy he hates most, “Went to Nas’, watched a film.”

“Cool.” Cory replies.

Naveed picks at the seams of his trousers for a moment, then looks up, “Why are we doing this? Like… the being nice shit.”

“You decided to walk with me.” Cory points out.

“Yeah but… not to… pretend we’re friends or anything.”

“Right. Right that’s stupid.” Cory isn’t sure if he means to be sarcastic or not, “You just go for walks with people you hate all the time.”

“I don’t hate enough people for that.” Naveed replies.

“Oh, so how did I earn the honour?” Cory asks him.

“I thought I’d been through that.” 

Cory shrugs, “Those were just assumptions.” 

“Based on facts.” Naveed replies. 

The taller boy sighs, stares at the water between the planks of wood on the pier. “I just… I know that, you hate me, or whatever. But… can’t we just, I don’t know, be nice for the week. Until this is over.”

“You want me to be nice to you?” Naveed checks.

“Would that be so hard for you to do?”

“So what is this? A truce?”

Cory shrugs. He barely knows what that means. “If you want to call it that.”

“But like, why should I? What’s in it for me?”

“No guilty conscience over hurting my feelings?”

Naveed laughs a little, “You have feelings?” 

Cory shoves him, smiling. “It would also help the time pass. If we weren’t on the cusp of an argument every 5 minutes.”

Barney nudges his nose against Naveed’s knee and Naveed pats him as he looks out at the sea around and below them, feels the wind hitting him. He considers the offer.

“Fine.” Naveed says. “I can try.”

—

“A toy shop?” Cory repeats. He’s glad he took the trouble of taking Barney back to Missy’s. 

“Yes, the woman your dog charged into owns the toyshop along the front. Her drink stained her dress and she feels you should work at her’s in compensation.” Dave answers. “Off you both go then.”

The two boys stalk out of the arcade.

“Remember you have to be nice to me.” Cory says on their way to the shops behind the esplanade. 

“Yeah, I haven’t forgotten yet.” Naveed replies, trying not to snap. 

Cory grins.

They both know the toy shop well. Cory used to look in the window when they’d pass, when his mum was still here, and Jordan too. And he’d press his hands to the glass and breathe against it to look at the new toys they have in. Then his mother would prize him away,

_ Don’t put your hands on that glass _ , She used to say,  _ Look, the window is all sticky now.  _ And they’d walk on down the road.

The owner of the shop gives them price guns coldly, clearly still angry at the Incident that caused her to stain her dress, and sends them in the back room to price the new stock. It’s larger than the bowling room had been, but they sit close, still, it’s just where the boxes of toys had been placed. Both of them work quietly. 

“You know for someone who owns a toy shop she doesn’t appear to like young people very much.” Cory points out eventually. 

“Well, teenagers are very different to 5 year olds.” Naveed replies, adding another priced sylvanian family box to his pile. 

“I ‘spose.” Cory says eventually. “Remember when this place had those collectable card things? Like you’d spend a tenner in there and get a card pack, and everyone would trade at school.”

“I remember. It caused so much drama.” Naveed says, remembering kids crying over not having as many shiny cards at their friends, “I never cared that much for them.”

“I stole a card from Jordan once. A really rare shiny one cause I were jealous. He cried for days over it.” He pauses to price another box, “I snuck it back in his room in the end, I felt awful.”

“Aw… Cory Wilson  _ does  _ have feelings.” Naveed teases.

“Thought we agreed to be-”

“Nice to each other, I know. I were just teasin’.” 

“Right.” Cory says, turning suddenly and swiping the price gun at Naveed’s knee, a little yellow price sticker reading £7.50 now stuck to his white trousers.

“Oi!” Naveed yells, placing a sticker on Cory’s cheek. Cory pushes him.

“You’re an idiot.” He says, peeling the sticker from his cheek and reaching over and sticking it to Naveed’s nose.

“Hey!” Naveed retaliates by using the gun to stick the stickers all over Cory’s shirt while the boy tries to fight him off.

“Stop!”

“What are you  _ doing _ in here?” The shop owner storms in, lips pursed, eyes, blue, piercing icily at them. “This is unbelievable. My 8 and 10 year old behave better than this.” She snatches away the price guns. “Instead of working in here, you can sort out the shelves, kids tend to leave them in a right mess.”   
  


The shelves  _ are  _ a ‘right mess’. They try to fix them quietly, but everytime Cory comes across a price sticker stuck to his shirt or fallen to the floor, he sticks it on Naveed’s shirt, and there’s silent, stifled shoving and giggling and trying not to be caught. It almost feels like they’re back at school. It’s a little bit like being with Riz. 

“Oh, hey, er… Riz is havin’ a party tonight.” Cory says, sorting the dress up hats onto their rightful piles on a shelf in the far corner. “You can come if you want.” 

Naveed is sorting out the lego boxes, putting the sets together neatly. He thinks about this, “Grounded.” He half mutters. 

“Right.” Cory says, remembering, “Can’t you just ask for your grounding to be lifted? You’ve been grounded for weeks.”

“One week.” Naveed corrects, dropping his arms from the lego boxes to his sides, “They won’t listen. And anyway, why would I want to go?”

Cory shrugs, “You could bring your friends. Nasreen and Missy and that.”

“There is no ‘and that’ it’s just Nas and Missy.” Naveed points out. “Who’ll look after Barney if the Booths are at ‘party.”

Cory presses his lips together and thinks for a moment. “... you could?”

“Are you kidding?” Naveed says, “No way would I ever get away with it. I swear I told you that before.”

“But it’s just one night. Just hide him in your room. I can’t take him to Riz’, he’s not allowed in the ‘ouse and he’ll get over excited with all the people.”

“Cory…” Naveed thinks about it and he tries to come up with more solid excuses to say no but his mind draws a blank. And he does like Barney the dog. Even if he’s Cory Wilson’s dog. Even if he’s the reason he’s grounded in the first place. “You’ll have to pay me in ice cream.” 

“Course. Any flavour you want.” Cory agrees. He picks up a stuffed toy dog that had fallen to the floor, “Thank you.” He says. And it scares Naveed how much he seems to mean it. 

-

It isn’t terribly hard to get Barney snuck into the house. Naveed’s dad isn’t home yet and his mum is in the garden round the back. Barney watches Cory hand his lead over to Naveed and just wags his tail. He doesn’t quite understand all this musical houses business but he doesn’t mind. He enjoys Naveed’s company, anyway.

“Okay, I’ll meet you here in the morning and we’ll walk him and then go to work.” Cory whispers as they stand at Naveed’s front door. He hands over some of Barney’s food too. 

“Why are you whispering?” Naveed asks in an equally hushed tone. 

“In case your mum hears?” Cory says, like it’s obvious. “Honestly, thank you so much for this mate.”

“I know what this looks like but I’m still not your mate.” Naveed retorts, turning his key in the front door, “It’s just a truce.”

“Course.” Cory says, “But thank you so much. See you tomorrow.” He bends down and ruffles Barney’s fur, half hugging him, and then he stands, thanks Naveed again and disappears back up the driveway. 

Naveed tries not to creepily watch Cory walk down the path away from him, and goes into his house, Barney hopping inside. The dog immediately begins to sniff everything eagerly. Naveed tugs his lead.

“We don’t have time for that, upstairs, come on.” He whispers to Barney, before tugging him up the stairs. 

Barney eagerly explores his room when Naveed closes the bedroom door and unlatches the dog’s lead. He sits on his bed, texts Cory that they made it into his bedroom, and lays down with a huff. He can’t believe he’s doing this. He’s not really thought it through. As he begins to rethink everything, Barney leaps onto the bed and presses one of his front paws firmly on Naveed’s middle. The boy groans.

“Please.” He pushes the dog lamely and he flops half ontop of him. Naveed sighs, “It is way too hot for this.” But he snaps a picture and sends it to Cory

**TO CORY**

_ he’s all settled in already _

Cory saves the picture on his phone with a wide smile as he wanders along the sea front to Riz’. He debates whether to reply with  _ awww _ or if heart emojis are a bit too much. He stops in the shade and looks at the picture again. He zooms in on Barney’s face, chin rested on Naveed’s leg. And then he scrolls up the picture, for some reason, and stares at Naveed’s bare skin where his t-shirt has ridden up ever so slightly. He turns off the phone and squeezes his eyes shut. They feel clammy and his head hurts from the heat of the day. 

He tries not to think about the picture, of Naved’s skin, but it plays on repeat in his mind all the way to Riz’. He doesn’t understand. 


	9. VIII

Naveed wakes up to warm breath panting onto his face. He grimaces and bats Barney away from him, only slowly remembering why the dog is even here. He opens his eyes with a groan and sits up. 

“Hey boy.” He says tiredly, stroking Barney around his ears. He glances over at the time-6:00. Far too early to be awake in the summer. “Let’s get you breakfast and hope my parents don’t wake up yet.”

He pours the last half of dog biscuits Cory had given him into the red bowl and let’s Barney gobble them up as he dresses. Then he grabs his phone to check his messages. There’s a few from Cory. About the photo he’d sent him. 

**FROM CORY**

_ awww cute _

**FROM CORY**

_ my dog i mean, not you _

**FROM CORY**

_ but you’re ok i guess?? _

Naveed can’t help but smile as he hurriedly texts him asking when he’ll be here. Then he decides to take Barney into the back garden, fearing the dog’ll pee on his rug or something. Barney sniffs around the garden, at the flowers and the grass. He snaps his teeth lamely at a butterfly and Naveed lays down and watches the sky brighten and brighten as the time passes. He tries not to doze because he knows his parents will wake soon. 

He sits up when his phone vibrates in his hand.

**FROM CORY**

_ give me 30 mins? _

Naveed texts back  _ fine  _ and aims to flop back onto the grass before his phone vibrates again.

**FROM NAS**

_ omg have you seen my snapchat? _

Naveed finds Nasreen’s story and watches the scenes from Riz’ party. There’s a selfie of Nas and Missy. And then one with their younger siblings too. And some videos of them singing. And then another video. It’s a little shaky, and the lighting is dim but the video is unmistakable. 

In it is Cory. And another girl he recognises- Shannon. And they’re kissing in a dark stairwell. And Nas’ giggle ends the video. 

Naveed swallows and stares at the phone screen as Nas’ story finishes. He feels bad. Like someone had beaten him up and left him winded. He swallows. 

**FROM NAS**

_ can you believe it?! _

**FROM NAS**

_ cory and shannon?!!! _

**FROM NAS**

_ i mean shan’s been after him for ages but i didn’t think he’d actually stoop THAT low. _

Naveed swallows and replies with a  _ yeah _ . Then he flops back onto the grass and drapes his arm over his eyes. He squeezes them shut and tries to ignore the feeling that is making him want to cry. 

He doesn’t know why he’s feeling like this. And he thinks that perhaps it’s just because it means he was right. That Cory will just kiss any girl and not care about how they feel.

Something wet tickles his elbow and he moves his arm away from his face to see Barney sitting beside him. He smiles weakly at him. He wishes he could forget about Cory all together, but how can he, when he’s babysitting the guy’s dog. 

Cory turns up more than half an hour later. And Barney hears him coming before Naveed does, and lifts his head from Naveed’s chest, tail wagging. And then Naveed’s side gate opens, creaking. Naveed sits up at the sound and turns around. Barney runs towards it, and launches himself on Cory as he saunters in.

Naveed watches their reunion, remaining cross legged on the grass. Cory looks dishevelled and messy, and wearing the same clothes as yesterday. Naveed isn’t sure if that means he didn’t take them off all night, or that he slept somewhere else (Shannon’s, probably). The thought makes him feel a little sick.

“Alright?” Cory greets Naveed, wandering over. “Thanks so much for looking after ‘im.”

“No problem.” Naveed mutters, standing up. He picks up the plastic bag next to him with all of Barney’s things in, and thrusts it into Cory’s chest, “See you later.”

“Hey! Nav man wait! Wait!”

Naveed stops halfway between Cory in the middle of the garden and his back door, and turns around.

“Are we not going to like, go for a walk or nowt?” 

“No.” Naveed says, “Can’t keep leaving the ‘ouse early. I’m still grounded.” 

Cory rolls his eyes, “I don’t get it. Are you mad at me? Because you looked after my dog instead of coming to the party? I’m sorry.”

“No.” Naveed says, stepping back, “I don’t care. I hate parties. I’ll see you later. Clear out before me mum sees ya.”

Naveed turns and walks into the house, slamming the backdoor behind him, instantly regretting it when he remembers his parents upstairs. 

Cory stands in the garden a little dumbfounded for a moment, feeling still half asleep, staring at Naveed’s red painted back door. He swallows, still feeling the slam of the door in the pit of his heart, like the wood landed splinters there. He looks down at Barney, tugs his lead.

“Come on then.” He says, quieter than he meant to. 

Naveed’s back gate creaks as Cory leaves. He’s not sure what to do or where to go. It’s far to early for anything. Definitely not back home. And Riz is probably sick of him after spending the night there. He finds himself wandering down to the esplanade. 

It’s quiet. The morning comes in whispers on the waves in the sea. Someone is on the lake in a small boat, moving the swans from the centre to the edge ready for use. He sits down on the grassy bank nearby it, pats Barney’s head.

He can't understand why Naveed is mad at him. Of course, there is the fact that Naveed always seems to be mad at him. But he thought they were getting over it. 

He thought they were more.

He looks down at Barney and wonders if maybe Naveed is pissed that he has to look after him. But he didn't seem mad when he dropped Barney off the previous night. He doesn't understand.

He and stares down the bank at the freshly painted pedalos that laze, empty, at the edge of the water, and the last one being led to join them by the man in the boat. Absentmindedly he strokes Barney's head, and he thinks, helplessly of Naveed.

He's not sure of anything Naveed related anymore. Because the picture he had sent the night before left him over thinking. And he kissed a girl to clear his head and it didn't seem to work at all, only made his head foggier. And now Naveed, who he thought maybe liked him now, is angry at him again. He wishes he understood.

An hour passes, and Cory is lying on the grass, staring at a cloudless early morning sky, trying not to think of Naveed when his phone dings. It makes Barney lift his head too, and he watches Cory sit up to read the message.

**FROM NAVEED**

_ the fuck are you doing? _

Cory frowns, and looks around him, searching for Naveed. His phone dings again.

**FROM NAVEED**

_ you looked dead _

Finally, Cory spots him, leaning against a tree on the other side of the lake, the side nearer the sea. Naveed looks so fucking picturesque that he quickly snaps a picture of him.

It's a beautiful picture (aesthetically, obviously). The tree looks almost out of place, with the sea shimmering behind it with an early morning glow. And Naveed, leaning against the trunk, shirt tucked into his black jeans, staring at his phone.

**TO NAVEED**

_ come join me. its warm _

**FROM NAVEED**

_ nah im good by my tree _

Cory flops back on the grass, flailing his arm out to pet Barney, only for his hand to land on the ground instead. He frowns and sits back up.

Barney had made his way to Naveed, and is pawing at the boy's trousers as, in return, Naveed ruffles the fur behind his ears. 

Cory takes more pictures of this. And he has to smile at them. Finally, he stands, and walks around the lake to reach Naveed. 

Almost at once, on seeing him, Naveed's face falls back into a scowl. 

"Alright?" He asks, but Cory doesn't think he's actually supposed to answer it.

"What are you doing here? You know it's still too early for work."

Naveed shrugs. "We've only got about 20 minutes. I like to be punctual." 

"Right." Cory says, watching Naveed pet barney and pointedly ignore him. "What did I do?"

"Nothin'" Naveed replies.

"What so you're just mad at me for no reason then."

"Guess so."

"Naveed." Cory says, "Why do we keep going in circles? I don't understand."

"You just don't care, about people's feelings."

"What are you on about?"

"Shannon." Naveed retorts, like it's obvious.

"What about Shannon?" Cory asks, blankly.

"Oh did you not make out with her last night then?"

"How do you... It doesn't matter, Naveed that doesn't mean anything."

"Exactly." Naveed says. "It means nothing to you because you think you can kiss whoever you want. That's not fair."

"That's not true, Naveed." Cory says, "She were only into it for a kiss n all. She doesn't care. It's not like she were in love with me or owt. It was just a hookup at a party why are you making this such a big deal?"

" _ Because _ ." Naveed says. And he puts so much emphasis in the word as if it alone is the reason.

"Right." Cory says, the word sounds balanced and sharp, but the rest of him feels shaky. His heart his beating loudly.

He hates fighting with Naveed, a lot because he doesn’t understand  _ why  _ they have to fight, and the rest because he likes Naveed’s company. He likes Naveed’s company so much it terrifies him. It’s crushing, the idea that Naveed doesn’t enjoy his company back, or is, at least, pretending like he doesn’t. He stares at Naveed and Naveed stares back. Cory has this stupid weird urge to push him into the bark of the tree. And he tries not to think any further than that. He blinks and swallows. 

“Well…” Cory says eventually, stepping back because he feels too close and his heart can’t quite take it, for some reason.

“I’ll see ya.” Naveed says, pushing past him from the tree and striding across the grass to the path along the sea front.

Cory watches him go, Barney’s tail thumping near his feet. He slumps against the tree branch. He doesn’t understand anything that he is thinking.

It’s a long twenty minutes. Cory isn’t really sure what to do with himself. He considers finding Naveed but he doesn’t want to fight with him again. He could go back and lie in the grass but he’s not sure he’ll ever get up if he does. 

Barney gets impatient and eventually he has to walk him up and down the path beside the lake, not going further, not wanting to fight with Naveed. 

He turns up to the arcade 5 minutes early and Naveed is already there. Dave eyes them both, feeling something between them is off, feeling like he’s failing to cut between unexplainable tension. 

“You’ll be working at the cafe today.” Dave says, Mr and Mrs Bell are expecting you.

“Bell?” Cory repeats, “As in our teacher Mr Bell?”

“Uh, no, I believe they are your teacher’s parents.”

Cory doesn’t think this day could possibly get worse.

It doesn’t get worse. To Cory’s surprise, it actually gets better.

Though seeing your teacher’s parents during the summer holidays while you’re on some kind of informal community service sounds excruciating, Mr and Mrs Bell are possibly the nicest old people Cory’s ever met- not that they’re that old.

Mr Bell lets Barney sit behind the counter in the cafe, where there’s a bowl of fresh water ready for him. He shows Cory a few of the recipes- how to cook the burgers, how to make their omelettes- of which he has been sworn to secrecy on. And he gives Naveed a waiter's job, as opposed to cooking, and shows him how to simplify orders-  _ 1x bug. ch, let _ , that kind of thing. Mrs Bell makes drinks at the counter, teas and coffees and milkshakes and slushies. Barney keeps her company. 

Cory often forgets how busy it gets in here. And the kitchen gets so hot, and even though there are three other chefs he gets the feeling he needs about a thousand more hands. And Naveed is swanning in and out the kitchen so often Cory can barely keep up. He keeps turning around and Naveed is just there, taking a plate of food from his hands like he’s been doing this for years.

And it’s stressful but it’s not bad. And after a lull in customers at about 3pm, and Naveed, more calmly then every other time, takes the plated mac and cheese from his hands with the smallest of smiles. He turns to leave then pauses, spins back around.

“Cory I uh…” Naveed glances briefly at the floor, then back up at him, “I’m sorry.” Then he turns and walks out the kitchen before Cory can reply.

And Cory just smiles.

“Mr Bell would just laugh at us.” Cory argues, nudging Naveed gently in the side. 

“Laugh at you maybe. He’d think all this is completely out of character for me.” Naveed answers. 

Cory laughs. “Sure.”

They’re walking back along the esplanade from the cafe, passed the lake. The sun beats down on them, Cory almost wishes, after a day in that kitchen, that it wasn’t. It shimmers in the sea like a _ sequin art _ picture. Everything is bright bright bright. Even Naveed is smiling like it. 

“What do you wanna do now?” Cory asks him. 

“Going home.” Naveed reminds him.

“How are you still grounded?! Fuck that, let’s go to the beach. I know a quiet spot.” 

“I can’t.” Naveed replies. He glances at Cory, “I know that, you don’t like to go home, but I ‘ave to.” 

Cory pouts. “What if… I facetimed you?”

Naveed bites his lip. It’s lucky his phone isn’t confiscated, it’d be the next thing. “Mmm, ok, but if Nas calls instead, I’m hanging up on you.”

“Deal.” Cory says, hoping, desperately, that doesn’t happen.

Naveed calls Cory when he gets back, not the other way around. He’s barely in his room when he opens facetime, barely flopping onto his bed for the afternoon when Cory answers.

“I’m on the pier.” Cory announces, rather than a ‘hello’. 

“Congratulations.” Naveed says, tone sarcastic and monotone. 

Cory, in the slightly crackly picture, moves his phone and sits down. “It’s so fucking hot.”

“Find some shade, idiot.” Naveed tells him, “Sit by the lake.” 

“Don’t be smart.” Cory retorts. Barney’s nose attacks the camera, Naveed’s laugh flutters through the speakers. 

“But smart is who I  _ am _ .” 

“Shut up.”

Cory moves the phone again, and Naveed realises he’s walking. 

They talk for hours, a break for half an hour when Naveed is called for dinner, and then another few hours. 

Naveed watches Cory squinting as sun pierces through the trees at him as he lies in the grass. And Cory watches Naveed press his face into his pillow and tries not to think about the way it makes his heart stop, and flutter and somersault and all those things he’s heard of but never believed in. 

He’s forgotten that he should be scared when he gets home that evening after bidding goodbye to Barney. His dad slams a kitchen cupboard as he opens the front door. 

“Oh.” Cory says. He never went shopping yesterday. He swallows, “Sorry.” 

“ _ Sorry  _ isn’t going to fill up my empty stomach.” His father snaps.

Cory closes the front door gently behind him, like the loud noise will make his dad worse. 

“I forgot. I don’t know why you can’t do it. You’re the dad.” 

“Don’t tell me what to do.” 

Kevin begins to storm through the hallway towards him and Cory rushes over to the stairs. 

“Dad. I’m sorry.”

“Where have you been all this time?”

“Community service.” Cory replies, halfway up the stairs, desperate to go all the way up. 

“Until 9pm?!”

Cory sighs, “I were with a friend.”

“And the night before?”

“Friends. Were Riz’ birthday.”

The party wasn’t for Riz’ birthday. His dad didn’t need to know that. Kevin’s breaths heave. 

“Can I go now, dad?”

His dad doesn’t reply, but Cory climbs the remaining stairs. He goes into his room. Closes his door tight. Then, just to be safe, pushes his desk chair under the handle. He collapses into his bed and stares at the ceiling. He texts Naveed about it. 

Smiles when the phone buzzes with Naveed’s photo- the one he took today, of him by the tree with Barney. 

“You ok?” Naveed’s voice is quiet and gentle and the world stills and balances. Like all the bad guys have dropped their weapons and are walking away. Like the war is over. 

“Yeah.” Cory says.  _ Now _ , he adds, only in his head. He closes his eyes, “I hate it here.” 

“I’m sorry.” 

On the other side of the phone, Naveed’s eyes are closed too. His finger glides along his duvet, circling his phone slowly. Cory’s breath crackles through the speaker. They’re silent for so long but neither hang up. Naveed doesn’t want to, though he tries not to think about why not. He doesn’t think about how he’s meant to hate Cory. In that moment, that evening, Cory isn’t a person to hate. He’s scared and alone and tired. 

Naveed’s never been further from hating him. 


	10. IX

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> i wrote most of this scene a couple months ago and the fact it’s finally posted for you all to read is so weird?? Cool? anyways hope you enoyed this x

They spend the morning together. Barney sits at their feet as they lie in the shade by the lake. Mornings are lovely, fresh, cool, but with sunshine that refrains the need of jackets. 

“My dad just, doesn’t take responsibility for anything. Like, shopping is the parent’s job right? I don’t mind it on occasion but, it is technically his job right?” 

“It is.” Naveed agrees, glancing over at him. He’s lying on right of Cory, so when he looks at his face from this angle he can see the mole below Cory’s eye, and he wishes he wouldn’t notice it so easily. He doesn’t know why he notices it constantly. “We’re still kids, really.”

Cory’s nose wrinkles. “Not sure 17 year olds are kids.” 

“Well we’re not adults.” Naveed says. 

“No.” Cory agrees. 

They’re both aware of the closeness of their hands, between their bodies. Cory swallows. Naveed casts an eye down to their hands, though it makes him go a little cross eyed. Then he pulls his own hand away from the grass and sits up. 

“What’s ‘time?” Naveed asks, hugging his legs to his body.

Cory checks his phone, “Nearly 9. We should go soon.” 

“Cool.” Naveed says, staring down at the lake. A swan, a real one, glides around the edge. Beside him, he feels Cory sit up too. 

“Should I take Barney back? Dave said we’re working at the swimming pool today.” 

“Probably. I’ll go with yer.” 

  
  


In half an hour they’re shaking hands with the swimming pool’s manager. And they're being told their jobs- cleaning the changing rooms, sorting the lost property, learning just how fucking gross public swimming pools are.

“It wasn’t enough that I hated this place, I had to learn all its horrors.” Naveed grumbles, pushing a mop bucket across the floor. 

“You hate it?” Cory checks, “It’s iconic though. It was  _ the _ place for parties as kids.”

“You think I were invited to any of them?” Naveed points out.

“You weren’t?” Cory frowns. 

“Okay, once. Zain invited the whole class when we were 9. A gross plaster stuck itself to my leg, I got splashed in the eyes by Dan as he called me gay, and I think someone peed, there was gossip going round the pool.”

“Right.” Cory says, “Fair point, they were worse than I remember.”

“Mmhmm. Plus it’s tiny, you can’t move in there in the summer, or the weekends, or after school hours.”

“True.” 

They both clean the changing rooms opposite each other. 

“I’m sorry Dan were a dick. You know, with the gay thing.”

“Well it were true though.”

Cory turns around in the doorway of his changing room, “That ent the point though. I know like, all me mates were dicks about it. Maybe me too.”

“You were the worst!” Naveed says, watching Cory’s expression suddenly fall shameful, “I’m kidding. You weren’t that bad.” 

Cory nods. “I am sorry though, if I ever… you know.”

Naveed nods too.

  
  


The changing rooms are so grossly humid, that it’s nice to breathe the hot outside air during lunch. They share chips from the nearest fish and chip shop and sit in the grass, cross legged opposite each other near the pool, wafts of chlorine overpowering the vinegar every so often. 

Cory’s eyes are so brown and Naveed wishes he didn’t consciously think about it. He remembers that he hates him, for some reason. 

They sort lost property in the afternoon. Chuck broken shit, fold grimy t-shirts and stretch wrinkled socks that seem to have been damp for months. The lost property is in a room beyond the reception, small and full of filing cabinets, and a massive crate for the left behind stuff, It’s small and cramped, a fact Cory thinks about too much. And they brush arms often, and Cory pretends it isn’t half on purpose. 

They emerge from the room when they finish sometime just before 4. The receptionist isn’t behind the desk, the chair left out, swiveled to the side like they’d left and not set it straight. Cory tucks it under the tall desk, catches sight of the rack of keys beside the old looking computer. Under each key, for they all look similar, is a label-  _ entrance, pool, cupboard, storage, toilets, pool (back).  _ And then spare locker keys. He stares at the entrance one.

“Cory, what are you doing?” Naveed hisses. 

Cory swipes the entrance key from it’s little hook and darts back out from behind the counter, stuffing it in his pockets before Naveed can see what it is. Just in time, too, for the receptionist appears, a young lad, only a few years older than them.

“Hey, uh, we’re finished.” Cory says

“Okay?” The receptionist says, “And?”

“Can we go?”

“Sure.” He looks confused. 

“Great. Thanks.” Cory smiles politely, and half drags Naveed out the room and into the summer outdoor air. 

“ _ What did you steal? _ ” Naveed whisper shouts.

Cory rolls his eyes, “Relax. I’m borrowing it.” He slides it from his pocket and holds it flat out in his palm.

“The fuck do you want to borrow a key for? It won’t lock your bedroom door to stop your dad getting in.”

“Idiot.” Cory says, “We can come back tonight. Actually  _ enjoy _ this place.”

Naveed stares at him, “You are kidding, right?”

“No I stole the key to lock my dad out my bedroom.” He answers sarcastically. He hits Naveed lightly in the shoulder and starts to walk away from the pool, “Nav, man, come on.”

“I feel like you’ve not overlooked the fact I’m grounded you’re just gonna tell me to say fuck it.”

“Yeah!”

Naveed rolls his eyes. “I can’t. Look, I have an hour until parents expect me. I’ll walk Barney with yer. And I’ll call you tonight to keep you company from your dad. We don’t have to go to these extreme lengths.”

“Naveed.” Cory stops on the path and looks at him, “You will never get another chance to break into a building in the middle of the night. And I’m going whether you come or not.”

“Ent it boring on your own?”

Cory shrugs, “Could bring Riz.”

“I’m not coming.”

“Yes you are! 12am, meet at the pool.”

“I’m not coming.”

After walking Barney up and down the esplanade twice, Cory drops Naveed home. “12am!” He whisper shouts again.

“I’m not coming.” Naveed retorts again. 

  
  


At 11:50pm, Naveed avoids the two stairs on the Haider family staircase that creak, and slips out the door. He curses Cory Wilson all the way to the pool. Curses him in his head even more when he meets him, standing, illuminated by the moon at the pool 10 minutes later. 

“Thought you weren’t coming.” Cory points out.

“Have to keep you out of trouble. You’ll destroy the place without me.”

Cory grins, spins around to the door, and slips the key into the lock.

The pool is much quieter, and much cooler, in the middle of the night, obviously. And every movement still echoes, but in a less chaotic way than screaming children, and blown whistles and endless splashes. Cory swings shut the door from the changing rooms and the slam rumbles around the room.

The pool is small, and beyond simplistic. Naveed knows for a fact that Riz and Alya Nawaz have one about the same size in their house. Besides the wall with the doors to the changing rooms and showers, the other walls are all windows, showing off the view of the sea and the esplanade left and right. To Naveed it just feels horribly invasive. 

“See?” Cory says. His voice bounces on the windows, on the water, “Much better at night.”

“Much more illegal.” Naveed mutters. 

“Hey, if that really bothered you, you wouldn’t be here.” Cory says, walking around to the side of the pool. 

He flicks off his trainers. Naveed swallows. Cory flails his hoodie off his arms, tosses it on the wooden bench behind him, then pulls his shirt off too. Naveed swallows again, mouth dry. He should probably look away, right? But does not looking make it awkward? Staring also makes it awkward. There’s no winning. 

Breaking his thoughts, suddenly, Cory jumps fearlessly into the pool. Naveed jerks back as water leaps out the pool, splashes pattering the tiled floor. Naveed edges round the pool to the bench. Cory swims to the side of the pool nearest him, holds a hand out.

Naveed eyes it incredulously. 

“You’re mad if you think I’m gonna fall for that.”

“Fall for what?”

“You’re gonna pull me in. I’m not stupid.”

Cory tilts his head to the side, “You think that low of me.” He pouts.

“You know I do.”

“Please?”

“Use the ladder.”

“Please?”

“Ugh.”

Naveed puts his phone down on the bench beside the pool. He considers taking his shirt off too, just in case Cory is the jerk he thinks he is. But he doesn't want to give him that satisfaction. He will not take his shirt off for Cory Wilson. Never.

"Come and help me, then." Cory says from the water. He flicks his hair and water splashes across the pool. Naveed absolutely despises it.  _ God _ .

He edges over to the pool and looks down at the boy in the water. 

"If you pull me in, I will kill ya." Naveed warns. 

Cory laughs a little. "Mate I won't." 

Naveed doesn't believe him. Doesn't trust him. But he doesn’t remind him that Cory isn’t his mate. And he stretches his arm out to the pool. Cory shifts over in the water, practically shimmering in the moonlight. He reaches his hand out and it brushes Naveed's, then holds it.

Naveed knew. He knew he was going in. Cory barely has to try. He tugs at Naveed, and with a cacophonous splash, he lands into the water. 

"Fuck you!" Naveed yells, surfacing, his voice bouncing round the pool walls. "I knew it. You better be fucking glad I left my phone.”

Cory laughs, fails to dodge the torrential splashes Naveed sends his way. "I wouldn't have done it if your phone was still in your pocket. And I didn't even think of it until you said I would. Hey!" 

Naveed continues to launch water over Cory. It's the closest he's going to get to actually killing him, realistically. "Oh sure. Who asks for a hand out the pool without planning to pull the other in?”

Cory gets a few splashes back at Naveed, “Well who falls for it?” He retorts.

“I didn’t fall for it. I knew what were gonna ‘appen.” Naveed argues. Somehow he’s drifted closer to Cory, the water pushing them together. He should shove Cory. Jesus christ he should. 

“Then why,” Cory jabs Naveed’s shoulder with one finger, “did you let me do it?”

Naveed falls quiet. He’s not really sure. He could argue that he was coming in anyway. Or that he was trying to prove that Cory is the absolute prick he always thought he was. Cory smirks in response to Naveed’s silence, quickly splashes at him. 

“Hey!” Naveed gasps through the word, and chases Cory, half swimming, half running, across the pool. 

They’re laughing, and Naveed falls a little into Cory, pressing the taller lad against the pool edge. Cory groans slightly at the impact, turns around and pushes Naveed away. Panting, Naveed looks at him. The mole under Cory’s eye glimmers with splashes of water. Naveed will find a use for it one day. His brown eyes shine too- with mischief and something else. Cory is grinning, biting his bottom lip. Naveed’s heart hammers. He wishes it wouldn’t.

“Your clothes are soaked, Nav.” Cory says, finally.

Naveed holds back from snapping at Cory for calling him that. His clothes  _ are _ soaked. This was a terrible idea. But still, the alternative was taking his shirt off. In front of Cory. For some reason it makes him feel pathetically nervous. 

“You can talk.” Naveed points out. Cory’s shirt and hoodie lie on the bench with Naveed’s phone, bone dry. But his trousers are drenched. 

Cory just smiles, like he’s trying to think of something to say next. Instead he reaches out and shakes the top of Naveed’s t-shirt, the part on his shoulder, above the water. Naveed flinches away, aware his heart shouldn’t be beating so fast around Cory. 

“Why- why’d you even bring me here?” Naveed asks, as he slowly catches his breath back. 

Cory shrugs and leans back a little against the pool edge, “Why’d you come. If you hate me so much?”

Naveed rolls his eyes. “I told yer. Had to keep you in check, didn’t I? Make sure you weren’t gonna wreck the place.”

“I were never gonna wreck owt, idiot.” He says quietly, gently pushing Naveed’s upper arm. Naveed’s stomach flinches suddenly. 

“Right. Because I’d-“

Before he can finish, they hear a noise, distinctly like a door being pushed open. They both freeze. A voice calls out from the changing rooms,

“Anyone ‘ere?”

There’s a crash, as though the person (who, assuming by voice, is a man) crashed open a door on one of the changing cubicles. Naveed and Cory look at each other in alarm.

“Shit.” Cory hisses.

The two make a dart across the pool to the ladder. Naveed climbs up it, while Cory, impatiently, clambers up the side (there’s no time or opportunity for Naveed to yell about how Cory could get out the whole time.) They grab the stuff from the bench- Cory’s hoodie, shirt, the pool key, and Naveed’s phone- and their shoes from under it, and Cory pulls Naveed behind the pool door.

“This is a shit hiding place.” Naveed whispers.

“Shut up.” Cory hisses. “There ent no where else.” 

Just as he finishes, the door flies open in front of them. 

“Hello?” The man peers around the pool, and drags a trolley of cleaning equipment into the room with him. 

Naveed presses into Cory, trying to keep as hidden as possible behind the door. Cory’s body is warm and wet and bare. His cheeks feel hot. Cory is very much trapped. And he can’t breathe.

The man- assumingly a janitor- wanders over to the opposite corner to where the boys hide, and takes out a mop. The door is still open. Naveed is almost shaking. Cory pokes him in the side lightly to make him look at him. They meet eyes. Naveed can’t breathe. They’re so fucking close their noses nearly brush. Cory freezes for a moment, then nods his head towards the door, and mouths run. Naveed pauses, watches the way Cory’s lips mouth the word for a second. Then he nods.

Cautiously, he peers around the door. The janitor has his back to them. Naveed vaguely grabs at Cory, and steps slowly round the door. They slowly sneak out. They think they’ve made it into the changing rooms without being noticed when Cory nudges the door slightly, and it starts to close.

“Hey!” The janitor’s voice.

“Run!” Cory says, out loud this time, pushing Naveed further into the changing room. 

“Oi! Stop!”

They break into a dash through the changing rooms, trying not to slip on the wet tiled floor. As they rush through the reception area, Cory dumps the key on the desk. They hear a crash and a yell of pain but barely process it as they leg it out the door and onto the grass of the esplanade. 

Cory over takes Naveed and the boy just follows, jogging after him towards the beach. They’re still bare foot, and Naveed grimaces as he runs along the concrete esplanade path. Cory jumps down from the beach wall, falling, and rolling, onto the sand below. Naveed slides down after him with a little more care and lands on his feet, still feeling sand cling to his wet body and clothes from the wall.

The boy, shirtless in the sand, is laughing. Naveed looks down at him, trying to hide his own smile (he blames the adrenaline). He pants and looks up at the sky. Stars. Stars blinking at them. Goosebumps rise on his arm from the chill in the windy beach air.

“Will he find us?” Naveed asks, putting his trainers next to where Cory had abandoned his own. 

“Doubt it. Sounded like he fell over.” Cory sits up, catching his breath from the run and his laughter. “Man that was insane.”

Naveed lets out a tired, gasp of a laugh, “Yeah.” He should complain about how they’re going to be in so much trouble, especially if the janitor is hurt. He should complain about how he’s freezing and how his parents will hit the roof if they find out. But he doesn’t. 

Cory stands up and vaguely attempts to brush sand off him (this of course fails). He puffs out a breath. Naveed watches. He hits Naveed’s chest lightly, 

“Come on!” He runs down to the sea.

“Haven’t we had enough water for one night?” Naveed asks, running down after him anyway.

“Never!” Cory says over his shoulder.

They reach the waves quickly- the tide is coming in- and Cory kicks the water in Naveed’s direction.

“Hey.” Naveed pushes him lightly- forgetting, for a second, that Cory doesn’t have a shirt on, that his hands are on his skin. “You’re gonna catch a chill.”

Cory smiles at him, “I’m not cold.”

“That’s definitely a lie.” Naveed says, “It’s cold. Put a shirt on.”

“You’re cold. I’m not.”

“Put a shirt on.”

Cory rolls his eyes, but walks back up the beach for a shirt. Naveed follows, nudges him on the way up, sand clinging to their feet as they reach the drier stuff. Cory nudges him back.

He puts his shirt on and grimaces. It clings to him. And he feels itchy from the sand. This was a shit idea. He notices Naveed shivering, picks up his hoodie and holds it out to him. Naveed looks at it like he’s never seen the red hoodie before (he knows the item well, Cory wears it constantly).

“No way.”

“You’re cold. I’m not.” 

“I’m not wearing Cory Wilson’s hoodie.” Naveed says. Breaking into a swimming pool with Cory he can accept. But he draws the line at wearing his clothes. 

“Put it on before you catch a chill.”

“Then you’ll catch a chill.”

“ _ You’re cold. _ ” Cory repeats a third time, “I’m not.”

Naveed sighs. Cory is a stubborn git. He snatches the hoodie and pulls it on his arms. It clings to his wet, sandy t-shirt. 

“Okay, now we run.”

“We what?”

“Run.” Cory repeats, “You’re cold.” He reminds him, in a deadpan tone. 

Naveed rolls his eyes.

“I’m gonna chase you.” Cory says.

“I hate you.” He mutters, but turns and jogs a little way across the beach, speeding up when he feels Cory coming up behind him, “Fuck off!”

Cory catches him around the waist all too soon. Naveed yells, grabbing at his hands and trying to rip them away. Cory’s laughing. He can feel his lips against his ear, feel his chest vibrate against his back. 

“Barney’s better at this than you.” Cory tells him, half carrying him some way up the beach. 

“Oh, that reminds me.” Naveed rips Cory’s hands from him and hurries back up the beach to the abandoned shoes and clothes. He picks up his phone. “Missy sent me this earlier.”

He hands his phone over to Cory where a video of Barney doing tricks with Hailey is playing. Naveed watches Cory grinning at his phone, and slowly takes a step closer.

“He’s a good dog really.”

“Yeah.” Cory says quietly glancing at Naveed, “Thank you.”

“It’s... it’s alright.” Naveed mutters with a shrug.

“Not just for this.” He hands Naveed’s phone back and the boy slips it into his pocket. “For everything.” He rests his hands on Naveed’s shoulders, shaking him a little.

“Cory...”

“Seriously... thank you. For helping find a place for Barney. For putting up with me. For coming here I...” Cory swallows thickly. 

Naveed looks down at the small space between them, then back up. Cory’s eyes shine. His face is still wet. His lips are wet. His lips...

Cory didn’t... he didn’t realise how close they were. He didn’t realise where he was touching Naveed, how one of his hands slips up to the back of his neck. He realises only then. And he realises he could kiss him. And he isn’t entirely sure why he realises this. Or why he leans in. Why he kisses him. 

Naveed’s lips are soft. Wet. Slow. It feels like sparks are shooting out of his fingers. But he’s kissing him. Naveed. Him. A boy. He’s kissing a boy. And he’s kissing Naveed and there are sparks he’s never known...

Cory is so warm. His lips are chapped and a little rough. Cory’s hands are cold, wet, sandy. Naveed’s stomach flips. And his heart. And his lungs...

Naveed pulls away abruptly. His eyes shoot open. He doesn’t know when his hands touched Cory’s shirt, but he pulls them abruptly away. 

“What are you doin’ man?” Naveed asks, whispering the words into the sea breeze. He’s talking to himself really. But he throws the words across the small space between them, to Cory.

He sees Cory visibly swallow. Watches Cory step away.

“Shit.” The taller lad mutters, “I’m sorry. Shit.” He steps away again, “Fuck. I didn’t- I didn’t mean... I’m sorry.” Cory grabs his shoes from where he left them, “I’m sorry.” 

He doesn’t know what he was thinking. Kissing a boy. Kissing Naveed. Kissing Naveed, a boy- a boy who hates him. Shit. He feels the cold to his arms now. Naveed is still wearing his hoodie. He kissed Naveed.

Shit, he kissed Naveed.

Cory turns away, begins to walk.

Naveed is frozen, but as Cory walks away he snaps out of it.

“Wait. Cory. Wait.” He hurries after him, “I’m sorry. Cory.” He grabs Cory by the shoulder, swivels him round. “I’m sorry.”

Cory stares at him. He breathes. He kissed Naveed and he doesn’t understand why. Not really. He kissed Naveed and... he wants to kiss him again. He nods slightly, presses their foreheads together, bites his lip.

Naveed whispers against his lips, “I’m sorry.” One last time. Then Naveed kisses  _ him _ .

Warm. Wet. Hands. In hair. Lips. 

They fall into the sand, Naveed on his back, Cory on top of him. Their bodies make prints in the sand. And they kiss and kiss until they can’t breathe. On the beach, behind a calm, slow sea, whispering near them, they kiss. Fuck the sand in their clothes, on their skin, fuck the janitor who chased them from the world, fuck what Naveed thought Cory was. Fuck everything. 

It all feels like fire.

  
  


There’s goosebumps on Cory’s arms and Naveed feels them under his fingers. He pulls their lips apart.

“We’re both going to catch a chill.” He says.

Cory shrugs, “Who cares?” He kisses Naveed’s lips again, softly.

“I care.” Naveed replies, pulling away again, propping himself up on his elbows. “We should head home.” 

Reluctantly, Cory obliges and stands, holding out a hand to help the other boy up with, which Naveed, surprisingly, takes without a second thought. Cory pulls him up onto his feet, and they stand close together, noses almost brushing. The smile Cory makes to this is small, and shy and when he does it he daren’t meet Naveed’s eyes. 

Naveed isn’t sure whether to kiss him again. They’re close and Cory looks so beautifully shy and his heart is throbbing and the waves are singing. He purses his lips,

“We should go.”

Cory nods. Steps away. Swallows. Naveed isn’t sure what to think. Cory isn’t either. He’s never, in all his rugby matches, felt this breathless. 

Naveed stalks back up the beach, slips on his trainers but not his socks, too much effort. He hugs Cory’s hoodie around himself, still cold, and smiles at Cory, who stands after finishing tying his laces. 

They walk along the beach until they find the steps from the beach and clamber up them. It’s silent between them but it’s somehow blissful. Like the kisses said enough that couldn’t be put into words. Naveed still wouldn’t know how to word it. His mind is still spinning. They walk up the hill and hover outside Cory’s house 

“Um.” Cory says, “I should, go in.”

“I’d invite you to mine but um, not sure what mum would say if she found you in the morning. Or worse we wake her coming back.” 

Cory nods, “Yeah. Yeah, no I’ll see you tomorrow.” 

Naveed nods back, “Yeah.” 

He’s not sure whether to kiss him again or not. Cory steps away before he can, towards his house.

“Night.” Cory says. 

Naveed watches him slip through his side gate, lifting the latch and pushing it open. Cory closes it beside himself and Naveed exhales shakily into the night, and walks up the road.

He stops outside his own house and stairs at it, swallowing. Then he walks passed it. He finds himself at Nasreen’s door. Texts her. Twice. 

A couple of minutes and he hears her backdoor open. Then her back gate. 

“What are you doing here?!” 

Naveed shrugs. He’s not entirely sure. 

“Naveed where have ya been? You’re soakin’!”

“Can I sleep here? I’m worried I’ll wake me mum up if I go in my house.”

“Sure, Naveed, come on.” Pulling him by the shoulder, Nasreen drags him inside. “Are you okay?”

“Yeah fine.”

“So you just go for midnight swims now.”

“No. No I erm…”

He’s not sure what he was thinking when he came here. That he’d confess to Nas that he’d broken into a swimming pool with the person he hated most in the school, and then they’d fled to the beach and kissed him? Nasreen will definitely laugh.

“What is all this?” Kaneez Paracha appears suddenly in the living room slash kitchen, arms out in front of her, gesturing to the two teens in the middle of the room. 

“Sorry, Auntie, I didn’t mean to wake you.” Naveed says. 

“Is okay, Naveed.” She says, “But are you alright, huh? You turn up here in middle of night all soaking wet?” 

“I know. It’s nothing. Just… something at the beach.” 

He was trying to make it sound better than the truth. The looks on Nas and Kaneez’ faces suggest that did not work.

“Not for… Nothing like-” He fumbles for words, “I were with Cory.”

Nasreen’s face forms an ‘o’ shape, and blinks once at him. 

“ _ Nas _ .” Naveed hisses, “He has a hard time staying at his place so I kept him company on the beach.”

“Company.” Nasreen repeats.

Naveed doesn’t know what to say.

“Well I’m sure some of Saleem’s pyjamas will fit you.” Kaneez says, “Come, put wet clothes in the washing machine. Nasreen you get pyjamas.”

Naveed hands Kaneez, rather embarrassedly his wet clothes, but hesitates, standing in the room in his underwear holding Cory’s red hoodie. He has this urge to wear it in bed. And he thinks  _ for fuck’s sake _ and hands the thing over to Kaneez. It joins his clothes in the machine’s drum. 

Nasreen reappears with pyjamas. They fit Naveed fine.  
  


They lie at 2am, opposite ends of Nas’ bed.

“Sooo” Nasreen starts. Naveed braces himself. “You and Cory Wilson then.”

“Piss off.” Naveed says. “There is no me and Cory Wilson.”

He’s not sure whether to tell Nasreen what happened or not. Partly because Naveed doesn’t want to admit quite how wrong he has been about him, but also because he’s not sure if Cory would want him to. Cory cares little about rumours about who he has kissed, but Naveed is pretty sure the guy has never kissed a boy before, and maybe he wouldn’t want anyone to know that yet. But this is also Nasreen and he wants to tell her so bad.

“He gave you his hoodie.” Nas points out.

Naveed is glad for the darkness of the room, his cheeks are so hot. “Shut upppp.” He says, “It’s nothing. He just… he’s having a hard time. I’m just, trying to be nice.”

“Being nice is helping him rehome his dog. Midnight meetups on the beach are something else.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Naveed lies. He’s still not sure though, what the something else is that made him meet Cory. Possibly because he’d never hear the end of it from him in the morning, possibly because he really was afraid Cory would wreck the place. Possibly a third reason.

Nasreen drops the matter as she struggles to keep her eyes open and falls asleep.

Naveed lies half awake and half asleep for sometime that night. And he remembers, distantly, as though it were part of a dream, a long ago conversation from the start of the summer, remembers saying that he’d never kiss Cory Wilson if he were the last boy on earth. 

And then he dreams of the boy’s lips, kisses on the beach. Weeks ago, such a dream would be classed as a nightmare. Not tonight.

  
  



	11. X

Naveed wakes up tumbling onto the floor of Nasreen’s bedroom. Nas grumbles from the bed, and Naveed groans from the floorboards. He slowly blinks himself fully awake and sits up. He meets Nasreen’s eyes. Nasreen laughs. 

He gratefully receives his clothes back from Kaneez, all folded perfectly, Cory’s hoodie, bright red, on top. He hurriedly shoves the clothes on, clutches Cory’s hoodie in his hands, unsure. He doesn’t put it on. 

“Oh and I called your parents this morning to tell them you were here, Naveed.” Kaneez says, “They were very worried.”

“Right, thank you, Auntie.” Naveed says. Nas leans against the kitchen counter, and watches in amusement. He glances at her and then clears his throat, “I should be going. Work an’ that.”

“You’re well early.” Nas says. 

Naveed swallows, then shrugs, “We start earlier now.” 

“Really?” 

Naveed sends her a look, thanks Kaneez again, then slips out the door. As the door closes he hears Saleem’s shout as he hurries down the stairs-  _ “Who went in my room las’ night?” _

As he opens the gate outwards, he hears the scrape of someone’s shoes as they jump out of it way. Naveed peers round, ready to apologise, then smiles. 

“Cory.”

Cory nods, smiling at first, then the smile falling. He purses his lips together. “Hi.” The boy manages. Then he looks up at Nasreen’s home, registering the situation. “What’re you doing here?”

“Stayed at Nas’.” Naveed replies with a shrug. He closes the gate behind him with a click. 

“Why?”

“I don’t know.” Naveed admits. “I just… I dunno. I was going to talk to her, I think. Maybe that’s why. I didn’t, though.”

Cory nods. He opens the gate to the Booths, the metal ring clinking. Barney flies out the back door when Cory unlocks it. Naveed watches Cory fall onto the concrete and let his dog smother him. He smiles, a burning in his stomach he once registered as annoyance bubbling into something else. 

“Oh, here, by the way.” Naveed awkwardly hands over Cory’s hoodie, pushing the material purposely into his hand so their fingers brush.

“Oh. Thanks.”

Naveed nods. Chest feeling tight. He purses his lips. Beside him, Cory wonders. 

Cory wonders about the hoodie and why Naveed didn’t keep it. He wonders about last night and if he wants it again. He wonders how Naveed truly feels about him, now. He wonders how he truly feels about Naveed. He wonders where to walk Barney.

Below the hill they walk down, the sea is calm and bright from the sun. It glimmers and they both look down at the ground to avoid it’s glare. Barney trots a little ahead of them, stretching his lead. His tongue hangs out and Cory watches him fondly. He wonders and wonders. He wonders the chances of Naveed still hating him. 

The esplanade is empty, when they reach it. And they walk from the lake to the swimming pool and back again, in an enveloping silence that whispers in the sea air around them, when they look up at the pool building, and across to the beach where they kissed. 

Cory doesn’t know what to think, let alone what to say. He only knows that he’s wanted to kiss Naveed for a long time, and that he thought about it all night in his bed as he stared at the ceiling. His head was full. It’s not only the fact that he has never kissed a boy before, but that no kiss has ever felt like that before. And he panicked over the idea that maybe he’s completely gay, and when he decided that that was stupid, that he likes kissing girls and he absolutely knows that, he panics over what he is instead. And why Naveed’s lips taste better than anyone else’s. 

Again, he looks over at Naveed, and he’s realised he’s looked at him a lot on this walk. The wind pulls Naveed’s hair forward. Cory wants to push it back from his face. He wants to push Naveed’s hair back and kiss him. And he wants to hold his hand, and he switches Barney’s lead into his right hand, so his left hand is free to dance near and around Naveed’s hand between them. Feeling his eyes, again, Naveed looks over at him.

“What?” Naveed asks. It breaks the silence. And Cory’s head full of thoughts dissolves into emptiness. He swallows and then shrugs.

“Jus’...” He turns and looks at the path ahead of them again. They’re coming up to the pier and the ice cream hut. The hut’s closed. But the pier, as it always seems, is open. “Do you want to go up there?” Cory nods towards the pier.

“Sure.” Naveed shrugs. They make a left and walk up the wooden structure that clunks under their shoes. The wind picks up. It takes every part of Cory, to keep him from rustling Naveed’s hair. 

They sit down at the end of the pier, as they so often have. Naveed picks at a part of the wood that’s rotting and worn by footsteps and rain. Barney sits and looks at the two boys, a little miffed at the silence. He barks. Cory smiles at him and reaches his hand up to ruffle the dog’s head.

“It’s okay, boy.” Cory says, “Lay down.” Barney slowly relents and relaxes against the wood. 

A few more silences pass until Naveed finds words. “Are you okay?” He asks Cory eventually, “Just because, like, last night. If you’re freaking out it’s okay-”

“I’m fine.” Cory says, hurriedly cutting him off. His chest feels suddenly flooded with air it doesn’t need or know what to do with. Shakily, he exhales it all away, and fumbles over where to rest his hands. “I mean…” He shrugs, “I don’t know what I am.” He says finally, separating his hands and placing them flat on the pier floor. 

Naveed watches his hands flatten, then looks up to Cory’s face, “That’s okay.” He says. Cory has never heard Naveed so gently and earnest, and it makes him look up and meet Naveed’s eyes suddenly. “You don’t have to know.” He leans forward a little, resting his hands near Cory, very much on purpose. Cory smiles a little, and looks down. 

They slowly move their hands closer until their fingers slip between each other, letting only the edges of their fingers touch. One brown finger brushes into a white one. At the same time the two boys look up, and break into sniggering laughter at the situation. Naveed leans away, but they both miss the contact. 

-

Dave is frowning into the telephone at the desk in the arcade when the boys finally arrive at work. They go to pass him but he holds up one finger to signal them to wait there. They watch him huff and rub his brow.

“Ok. Well they’re here now. I’ll interrogate them.”

The boys glance at each other. They’re not  _ that  _ late for work, barely two minutes in fact. 

Dave hangs up the phone and puts it back in it’s position beside the till. Then he turns to the two boys.

“Did you break into the swimming pool last night?”

A thousand things had happened since midnight last night, that Naveed almost forgot all about the pool incident. He purses his lips and swallows as Cory replies,

“No sir.” 

“So it were just two other lads matching your description, and not yous two, after working there during the day.”

“‘Xactly.” Cory says with a shrug. “You can’t prove it were us sir. He was at his mate’s all night, and I were at ‘ome.”

Dave eyes them carefully and slowly, looking from one boy to the other. He can’t  _ prove  _ they did it, the council still haven’t fixed the security cameras. He pinches the bridge of his nose, and sighs heavily.

“Okay. Right.” He looks up at the two boys, “This is a serious offence, okay? It’s more than a bit of disruption. We  _ could  _ involve the police, you realise? They’ll compare the finger prints on the key to the both of you. And you could be in real trouble.”

Neither need to be in more trouble. They uneasily glance at each other again.

“So what are you gonna do sir?” Cory asks. 

“You’re gonna give us the rest of your summer, working up and down the sea front, and litter picking on the beach. And unless the janitor, who broke his leg, by the way, wishes to press charges, we will let this drop. Alright?”

Naveed and Cory glance at one another again, and then nod, muttering a few  _ yes sir _ s. 

They spend the morning in the arcade, polishing the machines and removing gum and refilling the change machines with 2ps, across the building from each other (Dave’s rule), but Naveed can feel Cory watching him, whenever they are close enough to see one another. It makes his insides twist, and he’s not sure its a good thing. 

Because of Cory’s actions- a midnight break-in- they’re both stuck with ‘community service’ for the rest of the summer. And Naveed is trying to be pissed off. But when he remembers that night- being pulled into the swimming pool, getting sand in his clothes, being kissed by Cory Wilson- his insides feel lighter, and he can’t help smiling a little. 

And he can’t pretend he hasn’t spent the morning watching Cory right back. 

**-  
**

The wind picks up in the afternoon and clouds sweep the seafront. It sends beacher-goers away, into the arcade and the restaurants. And Dave sends Naveed and Cory onto the beach, armed with litter pickers and empty black bin bags fluttering backwards in the breeze. 

They tidy the beach quietly, working either side of the pier. Naveed works on the side in which they kissed the night before. He stares for too long out at the sea, his head full of nothing. He’s so aware of Cory, the other side of the pier. He thinks they have a lot to talk about, but he doesn’t have the words for any of it. 

By 3pm, Cory is leaning against the metal structure of the pier beside a tied up bin bag, watching Naveed. Slowly, Naveed works his way across the beach towards him, collecting the odd can, crisp packet, other unidentified plastics. 

“What?” Naveed asks at last when he is close enough and when he can’t bare the silence anymore. 

Cory shrugs. “I’m just… sorry I’ve fucked up your summer.” 

Naveed stands stands up straight and puts his litter picking stick in the same hand he holds the bin bag. “Right. Cause you ‘ave.” 

Cory nods. “I just…” He shrugs and looks down into the swirling sand at his feet. “I wanted to impress ya. I wanted to spend time with yer.”

“Not to get away from your dad?”

Cory rolls his eyes, “Well, yeah that. But it was more you.” He looks at Naveed, and Naveed can feel the way Cory’s holding his breath. He watches as the boy licks his lips and looks back down again. 

Naveed sighs, looks across at the sea. Waves tumble over and over. “A whole summer with Cory Wilson.” It startles Naveed, as he says it, how it sounds like the name of a shitty chick flick. 

“I’m sorry.” Cory tells him. 

Naveed bites his lip and watches a larger wave crash into the shore. It’s splash echoes across the sea front. It’s the only sound besides faint music drifting across from the funfair. 

“Don’t be.” He replies, dropping what he is holding into the sand and hurrying over to Cory. He kisses him deeply on the lips, pressing him against the rusty pier structure. 

Overcoming the surprise, Cory kisses hurriedly back, and pushes Naveed until they have stumbled across the sand to another part of the pier structure. Naveed’s back is pressed uncomfortably into it. But he doesn’t care. His hand is in Cory Wilson’s hair. And pulling on his white shirt, and catching Cory’s lip between his teeth. Drowning under the moment there are only two things Naveed is aware of. 

Cory Wilson. 

And the waves rushing into the shoreline.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i'm not entirely happy with this chapter (some of the sentences could be phrased differently??) but idk how to change it tbh and I really want y'all to have an update so I hope you enjoyed it! next update will hopefully come sooner than this one did, but we'll see xxx


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